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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  . 

DEPARTMENT  OF  UNIVERSITY  EXTENSION 

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MEMOIRS 


OF 


MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT, 


1802-1808. 


WITH  A  PREFACE  AND  NOTES  BY  HER  GRANDSON. 

PAUL  DE  RfiMUSAT, 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  FRENCH  BY 

MRS.  CASHEL  HOEY  AND  JOHN  LILLIE. 


IN    THREE     VOLUMES. 
VOL.1. 


NEW    YORK : 
D.   APPLETON    AND    COMPANY, 

1,    3,   AND   5    BOND    STREET. 
1880. 


H!ST68f  I 


COPTEICHT  BY 

D.   APPLETON  AND  COMPANY, 

1879. 


CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTION. 

PAGE 
POBTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES 1 

CHAPTER    I. 
(1802-1803.) 

Family  Affairs— My  First  Evening  at  Saint  Cloud— General  Moreau— M.  de  Ee- 
rnusat  is  made  Prefect,  and  I,  Lady  of  the  Palace— Habits  of  the  First 
Consul  and  of  Mme.  Bonaparte— M.  de  Talleyrand— The  Family  of  the 
First  Consul— Miles.  Georges  and  Duchesnois— Mme.  Bonaparte's  Jeal- 
ousy ....••••••  8<f 

CHAPTER  II. 

(1803.) 

A  Eeturn  to  the  Customs  of  the  Monarchy— M.  de  Fontanes— Mme.  d'Houde- 
tot — Burners  of  "War — Meeting  of  the  Corps  Legislatif— Departure  of  the 
English  Ambassador— M.  Maret— Marshal  Berthier— Journey  of  the  First 
Consul  to  Belgium — A  Carriage  Accident — The  Amiens  Fetes  .  .  65 

CHAPTER  III. 
(1803.) 

Continuation  of  the  Journey  to  Belgium— Opinions  of  the  First  Consul  on 
Gratitude,  on  Glory,  and  on  the  French — Ghent,  Malines,  and  Brussels — 
The  Clergy— M.  de  Eoquelaure— Eeturn  to  Saint  Cloud— Preparations  for 
an  Invasion  of  England— Marriage  of  Mme.  Leclerc— Journey  of  the 
First  Consul  to  Boulogne— Illness  of  M.  de  Eemusat— I  rejoin  him— Con- 
versations with  the  First  Consul  .  .  .  .  .  .80 

CHAPTER  IV. 

(1803-1804.) 

Continuation  of  the  First  Consul's  Conversations  at  Boulogne— Ecading  of 
the  Tragedy  of  "Philippe  Auguste"— My  New  Impressions— Eeturn  to 
Paris— Mme.  Bonaparte's  Jealousy— Winter  Fetes  of  1804— M.  de  Fon- 
tanes—M.  Fouche*— Savary— Pichegru— Arrest  of  General  Moreau  .  101 


373177 


ii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 

PAGE 

The  Arrest  of  Georges  Cadoudal — The  Mission  of  M.  de  Caulaincourt  to 
Ettenheim— The  Arrest  of  the  Due  d'Enghien— My  Distress  and  my 
Urgency  with  Mme.  Bonaparte — An  Evening  at  Malmaison — The  Death 
of  the  Due  d'Enghien— Kemarkable  "Words  of  the  First  Consul  .  .  120 

CHAPTER  VI. 

(1804.) 
5 

The  Impression  produced  in  Paris  by  the  Death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien — The 
First  Consul's  Efforts  to  dispel  it— Performance  at  the  Opera  House- 
Death  of  Pichegru — Breach  between  Bonaparte  and  his  Brother  Lucien 
— Project  of  adopting  the  Young  Napoleon — Foundation  of  the  Empire  .  140 

CHAPTER  VII. 

Effects  and  Causes  of  the  Accession  of  Bonaparte  to  the  Imperial  Throne — 
The  Emperor  converses — The  Grievances  of  Mme.  Murat — The  Character 
of  M.  de  Ke"mu8at— The  New  Court  .  ,  158 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

(1804.)  PAGB 

The  Trial  of  General  Moreau— Condemnation  of  MM.  de  Polignac,  De  Ei- 
viere,  etc.— Pardon  of  M.  de  Polignae— A  Letter  from  Louis  XVHI  .  179 

CHAPTER  IX. 

(1804.) 

Plans  for  the  Invasion— An  Article  in  the  "  Moniteur  "—The  Great  Offi- 
cers of  State— The  Ladies-in- Waiting— The  Anniversary  of  July  14th— 
Beauty  of  the  Empress — Projects  of  Divorce — Preparations  for  the  Coro- 
nation ..........  192 

CHAPTER  X. 

The  Pope's  Arrival  in  Paris— The  Plebiscitum— The  Marriage  of  the  Em- 
press Josephine — The  Coronation  Fetes  in  the  Champ  de  Mars,  at  the 
Ope"ra,  etc.— The  Court  of  the  Empress 214 

CHAPTER  XI. 

(1807.) 

The  Emperor  in  Love — Mme.  de  X . — Mme.  de  Damas — The  Empress  con- 
fides in  me— Palace  Intrigues— Murat  is  raised  to  the  Bank  of  Prince  .  229 


BOOK    II. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

(1805.) 

Opening  of  the  Session  of  the  Senate— M.  do  Talleyrand's  Eeport— Letter  from 
the  Emperor  to  the  King  of  England — Union  of  the  Crown  of  Italy  to  the 
Empire — Mme.  Bacciochi  becomes  Princess  of  Piombino — Performance 
of  "  Athalie  "— The  Emperor  goes  to  Italy— His  Dissatisfaction— M.  de 
Talleyrand— Prospect  of  War  with  Austria  ..... 

CHAPTER   XIII. 

(1805.) 

Fe"tes  at  Verona  and  Genoa— Cardinal  Maury— My  Retired  Life  in  the  Country 
— Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte — "  Les  Templiers  " — The  Emperor's  Eeturn 
—His  Amusements— The  Marriage  of  M.  de  Talleyrand— War  is  declared 


iv  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XIV. 

(1805.)  PAGE 

M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  Fouche"— The  Emperor's  Speech  to  the  Senate— 
The  Departure  of  the  Emperor— The  Bulletins  of  the  Grand  Army— Pov- 
erty in  Paris  during  the  War — The  Emperor  and  the  Marshals — The  Fau- 
bourg St.  Germain— Trafalgar— Journey  of  M.  de  K6musat  to  Vienna  .  284 

CHAPTER  XV. 

.(1805.) 

The  Battle  of  Austerlitz— The  Emperor  Alexander— Negotiations— Prince 
Charles — M.  d'  Andre* — M.  de  Ee*musat  in  Disgrace — Duroc — Savary — The 
Treaty  of  Peace  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .303 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
(1805-1806.) 

State  of  Paris  during  the  War — Cambace'res — Le  Brun — Mme.  Louis  Bona- 
parte—Marriage of  Eugene  de  Beauharnais— Bulletins  and  Proclama- 
tions— Admiration  of  the  Emperor  for  the  Queen  of  Bavaria — Jealousy  of 

the  Empress— M.  de  Nansouty — Mme.  de . — Conquest  of  Naples — 

Position  and  Character  of  the  Emperor         .  .  .  .  .321 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
(1806.) 

The  Death  of  Pitt— Parliamentary  Debates  in  England— Public  Works— In- 
dustrial Exhibition — New  Etiquette — Performances  at  the  Opera  House 
and  at  the  Come'die  Franijaise — Monotony  of  the  Court — Opinions  of  the 
Empress — Mine.  Louis  Bonaparte — Mme.  Murat — The  Bourbons — New 
Ladies-in- Waiting— M.  Mole— Mme.  d'Houdetot— Mme.  de  Barante  .  341 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
(1806.) 

The  Emperor's  Civil  List— His  Household  and  its  Expenses— Dress  of  the 
Empress  and  of  Mme.  Murat — Louis  Bonaparte — Prince  Borghese — Fetes 
at  Court— The  Empress's  Family— Marriage  of  Princess  Stephanie— 
Jealousy  of  the  Empress — Theatricals  at  Malmaison  .  .  .  365 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Emperor's  Court— His  Ecclesiastical  Household— His  Military  House- 
hold—The Marshals— The  Ladies— Delille— Chateaubriand— Mme.  de 
Genlis — Romances — Literature — Arts  .  .  .  .  .  387 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    XX. 

(1806.)  PAGB 

Senatus-Consultum  of  the  30th  of  March— Foundation  of  Monarchies  and 

Duchies — Queen  Hortense       .  .  .  .  .  .  .419 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

(1806.) 

I  go  to  Cauterets — The  King  of  Holland — Factitious  Tranquillity  of  France 
— M.  de  Metternich — The  New  Catechism — The  Germanic  Confedera- 
tion— Poland — Death  of  Mr.  Fox — "War  is  declared — Departure  of  the 
Emperor — M.  Pasquier  and  M.  Mold — Session  of  the  Senate — The  Open- 
ing of  Hostilities — The  Court — Eeception  of  Cardinal  Maury  .  .  439 

CHAPTER  XXII. 

(1806-1807.) 

Death  of  Prince  Louis  of  Prussia— Battle  of  Jena— The  Queen  of  Prussia 
and  the  Emperor  Alexander — The  Emperor  and  the  Ee volution — Court 
Life  at  Mayence— Life  in  Paris— Marshal  Brune— Taking  of  Lubeck— 
The  Princess  of  Hatzfeld— The  Auditors  of  the  State  Council— Suffer- 
ings of  the  Army — The  King  of  Saxony — Battle  of  Eylau  .  .  .  463 

CHAPTER   XXIH. 
(1807.) 

The  Eeturn  of  the  Empress  to  Paris — The  Imperial  Family — Junot — Fouch6 
—The  Queen  of  Holland— Levy  of  the  Conscripts  of  1808— Theatricals  at 
Court— Letter  from  the  Emperor— Siege  of  Dantzic— Death  of  the  Em- 
press of  Austria— Death  of  Queen  Hortense'a  Son— M.  Decazes— The 
Emperor's  Want  of  Feeling 486 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

(1807.) 

The  Duke  of  Dantzic— Fouche's  Police— Battle  of  Friedland— M.  de  La- 
meth— Treaty  of  Tilsit— Eeturn  of  the  Emperor— M.  de  Talleyrand— 
The  Ministers— The  Bishops 505 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

(1807.)  PAG* 

Vexations  at  Court — Friendship  with  M.  de  Talleyrand — General  Kapp — Gen- 
eral Clarke — Session  of  the  Legislative  Bodies — The  Emperor's  Speech — 
Fetes  of  the  15th  of  August— Marriage  of  Jerome  Bonaparte— Death  of  Le 
Brun— The  Abbe  Delille— M.  de  Chateaubriand— Dissolution  of  the 
Tribunate— The  Court  removes  to  Fontainebleau  .  523 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 
(1807.) 

The  Power  of  the  Emperor— Resistance  of  the  English— The  Emperor's 
Life  at  Fontainebleau — Plays — Talma — King  J4rome — The  Princess  of 
Baden — The  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg — Princess  Borghese — Cambace'res 
—Foreign  Princes— Spanish  Affairs— Previsions  of  M.  de  Talleyrand— 
M.  de  Ke*musat  is  made  Superintendent  of  Theatres — The  Fortunes  and 
the  Difficulties  of  the  Marshals  ......  543 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

(1807-1808.) 
Projects  of  Divorce  .  x    .  .      .     .  .  .  .580 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

(1807-1808.) 

Eeturn  from  Fontainebleau— The  Emperor's  Journey  in  Italy— The  Youth  of 
M.  de  Talleyrand— Fetes  at  the  Tuileries— The  Emperor  and  the  Artists 
—The  Emperor's  Opinion  of  the  English  Government— The  Marriage  of 
Mile,  de  Tascher— Count  Eomanzoff— Marriage  of  Marshal    Berthier— 
The  University— Affairs  of  Spain       .  ....    603 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 

(1808.) 

The  "War  with  Spain— The  Prince  of  the  Peace— The  Prince  of  the  Asturias 
—The  Abdication  of  King  Charles  IV.— The  Departure  of  the  Emperor 
—His  Sojourn  at  Bayorme— Letter  of  the  Emperor— Arrival  of  the 
Princes  in  France— Birth  of  the  Second  Son  of  the  Queen  of  Holland- 
Abdication  of  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  .  .  .  .  631 

CONCLUSION •    649 

POSTSCRIPT •    C65 

NOTES  6?7 


PREFACE. 


I. 

MY  father  bequeathed  to  me  the  manuscript  of  the  me- 
moirs of  my  grandmother,  who  was  lady-in-waiting  to  the 
Empress  Josephine,  accompanied  by  an  injunction  that  I 
should  publish  them.  He  regarded  those  memoirs  as  ex- 
tremely important  to  the  history  of  the  first  portion  of  the 
present  century,  and  had  frequently  contemplated  publishing 
them  himself ;  but  he  was  always  hindered  from  doing  so, 
either  by  his  other  duties,  by  his  many  labors,  or  by  certain 
scruples.  He  deferred  the  moment  at  which  the  public  was 
to  be  made  acquainted  with  these  valuable  reminiscences  of 
an  epoch — recent,  indeed,  but  respecting  which  the  present 
generation  is  so  ill  informed — precisely  because  that  epoch 
was  recent,  and  many  persons  who  had  been  involved  in  its 
important  events  were  still  living.  Although  the  author  of 
these  memoirs  can  not  be  accused  of  intentional  malice,  she 
passes  judgment  upon  persons  and  things  very  freely.  A  cer- 
tain consideration,  which  is  not  always  consonant  with  the 
verity  of  history,  is  due,  not  only  to  the  living,  but  to  the 
children  of  the  dead ;  the  years  passed  on,  however,  and  the 
reasons  for  silence  diminished  with  the  lapse  of  time. 

About  1848  my  father  would  perhaps  have  allowed  this 
manuscript  to  see  the  light ;  but  the  empire  and  the  Emperor 
returned,  and  then  the  book  might  have  been  regarded  either 
as  a  piece  of  flattery  tendered  to  the  son  of  Queen  Hortense, 
who  is  very  gently  handled  by  the  writer,  or  as  a  direct  insult, 
on  other  points,  to  the  dynasty.  Circumstances  had  thus 
given  a  polemic  character — an  aspect  of  actuality,  as  the 


iv  PREFACE. 

phrase  goes — to  a  work  which  should  be  regarded  as  a  candid 
and  impartial  history,  the  narrative  of  a  remarkable  woman, 
who  relates  with  simple  sincerity  that  which  she  witnessed 
at  the  court  and  during  the  reign  of  the  Emperor,  and  who 
records  her  estimate  of  him  as  an  individual.  In  any  case,  it 
is  probable  that  the  book  would  have  been  prosecuted,  and 
its  publication  interdicted.  I  may  add,  lest  any  should  con- 
sider these  reasons  insufficient,  that  my  father,  who  was  al- 
ways willing  that  his  politics,  his  opinions,  and  his  personal 
conduct  should  be  discussed  by  the  critics  and  the  press,  who 
lived  in  the  full  glare  of  publicity,  yet  shrank  with  great  re- 
luctance from  placing  names  which  were  dear  to  him  before 
the  public.  That  they  should  incur  the  slightest  censure, 
that  they  should  be  uttered  with  any  severity  of  tone,  he 
dreaded  extremely.  He  was  timid  when  either  his  mother 
or  his  son  was  in  question.  His  love  for  his  mother  had  been 
the  "  grand  passion  "  of  his  life.  To  her  he  ascribed  all  the 
happiness  of  his  youth,  every  merit  which  he  possessed,  and 
all  the  success  of  every  kind  that  had  come  to  him  through- 
out his  whole  existence.  He  derived  from  her  his  qualities 
alike  of  heart  and  mind ;  he  was  bound  to  her  by  the  tie  of 
close  similarity  of  ideas,  as  well  as  by  that  of  filial  affection. 
Her  memory,  her  letters,  her  thoughts  occupied  a  place  in 
his  life  which  few  suspected,  for  he  seldom  spoke  of  her,  pre- 
cisely because  he  was  always  thinking  of  her,  and  he  would 
have  feared  imperfect  sympathy  from  others  in  his  admira- 
tion of  her  who  was  incomparable  in  his  eyes.  Who  among 
us  does  not  know  what  it  is  to  be  united  by  a  passionate, 
almost  fierce  affection  to  one  who  is  no  more ;  ceaselessly  to 
think  of  that  beloved  one,  to  question,  to  dream,  to  be  always 
under  the  impression  of  the  vanished  presence — of  the  silent 
counsels ;  to  feel  that  the  life  gone  from  us  is  mixed  up  with 
our  own  life,  every  day,  not  only  on  great  occasions,  and  in 
all  our  actions,  whether  public  or  private ;  and  yet,  that  we 
can  not  bear  to  speak  to  others  of  the  ever-present  occupant 
of  our  thoughts — no,  not  even  to  our  dearest  friends — and 


PREFACE.  v 

can  not  even  hear  the  dear  name  uttered  without  secret  pain 
and  disquiet?  Rarely,  indeed,  can  even  the  sweetness  of 
praise  lavished  upon  that  name  by  a  friend  or  a  stranger 
avail  to  soothe  our  deep,  mysterious  trouble,  or  render  it 
endurable. 

While,  however,  a  proper  and  natural  sentiment  dictates 
that  memoirs  should  not  appear  until  a  considerable  time  has 
elapsed,  it  is  equally  desirable  that  their  publication  should 
not  be  delayed  until  all  trace  of  the  facts  related,  of  the  im- 
pressions made,  or  of  the  eye-witnesses  of  events  has  passed 
away.  In  order  that  the  accuracy,  or  at  least  the  sincerity 
of  memoirs  may  not  be  disputed,  each  family  should  be  in  a 
position  to  substantiate  them  by  its  own  recollections ;  and  it 
is  well  that  the  generation  which  reads  them  should  follow 
that  which  they  depict.  The  records  they  contain  are  all  the 
more  useful  because  the  times  which  they  chronicle  have  not 
yet  become  altogether  historic.  This  is  our  case  at  the  pres- 
ent moment,  and  the  great  name  of  Napoleon  is  still  a  party 
battle-cry.  It  is  interesting  to  introduce  a  new  element  into 
the  strife  which  rages  around  that  majestic  shade.  Although 
the  epoch  of  the  First  Empire  has  been  much  discussed  by 
the  writers  of  memoirs,  the  inner  life  of  the  imperial  palace 
has  never  been  handled  freely,  and  in  detail ;  and  for  this 
good  reasons  have  existed.  The  functionaries  or  the  fre- 
quenters of  the  court  of  Napoleon  I.  did  not  care  to  reveal 
with  entire  unreserve  the  story  of  the  time  they  had  passed 
in  his  service.  The  majority,  having  joined  the  Legitimist 
ranks  after  the  Restoration,  were  humiliated  by  the  remem- 
brance that  they  had  served  the  usurper,  especially  in  offices 
which  are  generally  held  to  be  ennobled  only  by  the  heredi- 
tary greatness  of  him  who  confers  them  ;  and  their  descend- 
ants would  have  been  disconcerted  had  such  manuscripts 
been  left  to  them,  by  their  authors,  with  the  obligation  of 
giving  them  to  the  world.  It  would,  perhaps,  be  difficult  to 
find  another  editor,  also  a  grandson,  who  could  publish  such 
a  work  so  willingly  as  I.  The  talent  of  the  writer  and  the 


vi  PREFACE. 

utility  of  her  book  affect  me  much  more  than  the  difference 
between  the  opinions  of  my  grandmother  and  those  of  her 
descendants.  My  father's  life,  his  renown,  the  political  creed 
which  is  his  most  precious  bequest  to  me,  absolve  me  from 
any  necessity  for  explaining  how  and  why  it  is  that  I  do  not 
necessarily  adopt  all  the  views  of  the  author  of  these  Me- 
moirs. On  the  contrary,  it  would  be  easy  to  find  in  this 
book  the  first  traces  of  that  liberal  spirit  which  animated 
my  grandparents  in  the  first  days  of  the  Revolution,  which 
was  transmitted  to  and  happily  developed  in  their  son.  It 
was  almost  being  liberal  already  not  to  regard  the  principles 
of  political  liberty  with  hatred  at  the  end  of  the  last  century, 
when  so  many  people  were  ready  to  lay  crimes  which  tar- 
nished the  Revolution  to  the  charge  of  that  liberty,  and  to 
pass  judgment,  notwithstanding  the  true  admiration  and  the 
deep  gratitude  with  which  they  regarded  the  Emperor,  on 
the  defects  of  his  character  and  the  evils  of  despotism. 

Such  valuable  impartiality  was  rare  indeed  among  the 
contemporaries  of  the  great  Emperor,  nor  have  we  met  with 
it  in  our  own  time  among  the  servants  of  a  sovereign  far  less 
likely  to  dazzle  those  who  approached  him.  Such  a  senti- 
ment is,  however,  easy  at  the  present  day.  Events  have 
brought  France  into  a  state  in  which  she  is  ready  to  receive 
everything  with  equanimity,  to  judge  every  one  with  equity. 
We  have  observed  many  changes  of  opinion  concerning  the 
early  years  of  the  present  century.  One  need  not  have 
reached  a  very  advanced  stage  of  life  to  recall  a  time  when 
the  legend  of  the  Empire  was  accepted  even  by  the  enemies 
of  the  Empire ;  when  it  might  be  admired  with  impunity ; 
when  children  believed  in  an  Emperor,  who  was  at  once  a 
grand  personage  and  a  good  fellow,  somewhat  like  the  notion 
of  God  entertained  by  Beranger,  who  indeed  turned  both 
God  and  Napoleon  into  heroes  for  his  odes.  The  most  <Je- 
tennined  adversaries  of  despotism,  those  who  were  them- 
selves destined  to  undergo  persecution  by  a  new  Empire, 
brought  back  to  France  the  mortal  remains  of  Napoleon  the 


PREFACE.  vii 

Great — his  "  ashes,"  as,  lending  an  antique  coloring  to  a  mod- 
em ceremony,  it  was  the  fashion  to  say  just  then.  At  a  later 
date,  experience  of  the  Second  Empire  opened  the  eyes,  even 
of  those  who  do  not  admit  passion  into  politics,  to  the  truth 
respecting  the  first.  The  disasters  brought  upon  France  in 
1870,  by  Napoleon  III.,  have  reminded  us  that  it  was  the 
other  Emperor  who  commenced  that  fatal  work;  and  an 
almost  general  malediction  rises  to  the  lips  of  the  nation  at 
that  name — Bonaparte — which  was  once  uttered  with  re- 
spectful enthusiasm.  So  fluctuating  is  the  justice  of  nations! 
It  is,  however,  allowable  to  say  that  the  justice  of  France 
to-day  comes  nearer  to  true  justice  than  at  the  time  when, 
swayed  by  the  longing  for  rest  and  the  dread  of  liberty,  she 
surrendered  herself  to  the  passion  for  military  glory.  Be- 
tween these  two  extremes  how  many  modes  of  opinion  have 
arisen,  and  gone  through  their  several  phases  of  triumph  and 
decline !  It  will  be  evident  to  all  readers,  I  hope,  that  the 
author  of  the  following  Memoirs,  who  came  to  the  Court  in 
her  youth,  regarded  those  problems  which  were  then  and  still 
are  in  debate,  although  General  Bonaparte  thought  he  had 
solved  them,  with  an  entire  absence  of  prejudice.  Her  opin- 
ions were  formed  by  degrees,  like  the  opinions  of  France 
itself,  which  was  also  very  young  in  those  days.  She  was  at 
first  dazzled  and  aroused  to  enthusiasm  by  the  great  genius  of 
the  age,  but  she  afterward  recovered  the  balance  of  her  judg- 
ment by  the  aid  of  events  and  of  contact  with  other  minds. 
More  than  one  of  our  contemporaries  may  find  in  these  Me- 
moirs an  explanation  of  the  conduct  or  the  state  of  mind  of 
some  persons  of  their  kin  whose  Bonapartism  or  Liberalism 
at  different  epochs  has  hitherto  appeared  inexplicable  to  them. 
And  also — not  their  least  merit  in  my  eyes — these  Memoirs 
will  reveal  to  the  reader  the  first  germs  of  a  remarkable  tal- 
ent, which  was  developed  in  the  writer's  son  to  a  supreme 
degree. 

A  brief  summary  of  the  life  of  my  grandmother,  or  at 
least  of  the  period  which  preceded  her  arrival  at  Court,  is 


viii  PREFACE. 

indispensable  to  the  reader's  comprehension  of  the  impres- 
sions and  the  remembrances  which  she  brought  thither.  My 
father  had  frequently  projected  a  complete  biography  of  his 
parents,  and  had,  indeed,  sketched  out  some  portions  of  the 
work.  He  did  not  leave  any  of  it  in  a  finished  condition ; 
but  a  great  number  of  notes  and  fragments  written  by  his 
own  hand,  concerning  the  members  of  his  family,  his  own 
youthful  opinions,  and  persons  whom  he  had  known,  render 
it  easy  to  narrate  the  incidents  of  my  grandmother's  early 
years,  the  feelings  with  which  she  entered  upon  her  life  at 
Court,  and  the  circumstances  that  led  her  to  write  her  Me- 
moirs. It  is  also  in  my  power  to  add  some  comments  upon 
her  by  her  son,  which  will  lead  the  reader  to  know  and  es- 
teem her.  It  was  my  father's  strong  desire  that  her  readers 
should  be  inspired  with  kindly  sentiments  toward  the  object 
of  his  own  devoted  love  and  admiration ;  and  I  believe  that 
the  perusal  of  her  reminiscences,  and  especially  of  her  cor- 
respondence, which  is  also  to  be  given  to  the  public  in  due 
time,  can  not  fail  to  secure  the  realization  of  his  wish. 


II. 

Claire  Elisabeth  Jeanne  Gravier  de  Yergennes  was  born 
on  the  5th  of  January,  1780.  Her  father  was  Charles  Gra- 
vier de  Yergennes,  Counselor  to  the  Parliament  of  Bur- 
gundy, Master  of  Kequests,*  afterward  Intendant  of  Auch, 
and  finally  Director  of  the  Yingtiemes.  f  My  great-grand- 
father was  not,  therefore,  as  it  has  been  frequently  but  erro- 
neously stated,  the  minister  who  was  so  well  known  as  the 
Comte  de  Yergennes.  That  minister  had  an  elder  brother 
who  was  called  "  the  Marquis,"  the  first  of  the  family,  I  be- 
lieve, who  bore  such  a  title.  This  marquis  had  quitted  the 

*  An  officer  in  France,  whose  duty  it  is  to  report  petitions  to  the  Council  of 
State. 

f  The  Vingtibne  was  a  tax  imposed,  under  the  ancien  regime,  on  land  and 
house  property,  and  which  amounted  to  a  twentieth  of  the  revenue. 


PREFACE.  ix 

magistracy  to  enter  upon  a  diplomatic  career.  He  was  act- 
ing as  minister  in  Switzerland  in  1777,  when  the  French 
treaties  with  the  Helvetian  Republic  were  renewed.  After- 
ward he  was  given  the  title  of  ambassador.  His  son,  Charles 
Gravier  de  Yergennes,  who  was  born  at  Dijon  in  1751,  mar- 
ried Adelaide  Franchise  de  Bastard,  born  about  1760.  This 
lady's  family  came  originally  from  Gascony,  and  a  branch  of 
it,  whose  members  distinguished  themselves  at  the  bar  and 
in  the  magistracy,  was  settled  at  Toulouse.  Her  father, 
Dominique  de  Bastard,  born  at  Laffitte  (Haute-Garonne),  had 
been  one  of  the  counselors  to  the  parliament,  and  was  the 
senior  counselor  at  the  time  of  his  death.  His  bust  is  in  the 
Salle  des  Illustres  in  the  Capitol.  He  took  an  active  part  in 
the  measures  of  Chancellor  Maupeou.  His  daughter's  hus- 
band, M.  de  Yergennes,  being  a  member  of  the  legal  pro- 
fession, bore,  as  was  the  custom  under  the  old  regime,  no 
title.  It  is  said  that  he  was  a  man  of  only  ordinary  ability, 
who  took  his  pleasure  in  life  without  much  discrimination, 
but  also  that  he  had  good  sense  and  was  a  useful  official.  He 
belonged  to  that  administrative  school  of  which  MM.  de 
Trudaine  were  the  leaders. 

Madame  de  Yergennes,  of  whom  my  father  constantly 
spoke,  was  a  person  of  more  individuality  of  character ;  she 
was  both  clever  and  good.  When  he  was  quite  a  child,  my 
father  was  on  most  confidential  terms  with  her,  as  grandsons 
frequently  are  with  their  grandmothers.  In  his  bright  and 
kindly  nature,  his  pleasant  raillery,  which  was  never  mali- 
cious, he  resembled  her ;  and  from  her  he  also  inherited  his 
musical  gifts,  a  good  voice  for  singing,  and  a  quick  memory 
for  the  airs  and  couplets  of  the  vaudevilles  of  the  day.  He 
never  lost  his  habit  of  humming  the  popular  songs  of  the  old 
regime.  Madame  de  Yergennes  had  the  ideas  of  her  time — 
a  touch  of  philosophy,  stopping  short  of  incredulity,  and  a 
certain  repugnance  to  the  Court,  although  she  regarded  Louis 
XYI.  with  affection  and  respect.  Her  intellect,  which  was 
bright,  practical,  and  independent,  was  highly  cultivated ; 


x  PREFACE. 

her  conversation  was  brilliant  and  sometimes  very  free,  after 
the  manner  of  the  period.  Nevertheless,  she  gave  her  two 
daughters,  Claire  and  Alix,*  a  strict  and  indeed  rather  soli- 
tary education,  for  it  was  the  fashion  of  that  day  that  parents 
should  see  but  little  of  their  children.  The  two  sisters  studied 
in  a  large,  fireless  room,  apart  from  the  rest  of  the  house, 
under  the  inspection  of  a  governess,  and  were  instructed  in 
what  may  be  called  the  frivolous  arts — music,  drawing,  and 
dancing.  They  were  seldom  taken  to  see  a  play,  but  they 
were  occasionally  indulged  with  a  visit  to  the  opera,  and  now 
and  then  with  a  ball. 

M.  de  Vergennes  had  not  desired  or  foreseen  the  Revolu- 
tion ;  but  he  was  neither  displeased  nor  alarmed  by  it.  He 
and  his  friends  belonged  to  that  citizen  class,  ennobled  by 
holding  public  offices,  which  seemed  to  be  the  nation  itself, 
and  he  can  not  have  found  himself  much  out  of  his  place 
among  those  who  were  called  "the  electors  of  '89."  He 
was  elected  a  member  of  the  Council  of  the  Commune,  and 
made  a  major  in  the  National  Guard.  M.  de  Lafayette, 
whose  granddaughter  was  to  become  the  wife  of  M.  de  Ver- 
gennes's  grandson,  forty  years  after,  and  M.  Eoyer-Collard, 
whom  that  grandson  was  to  succeed  at  the  French  Academy, 
treated  him  like  one  of  themselves.  His  opinions  were  more 
in  accordance  with  those  of  M.  Royer-Collard  than  with  those 
of  H.  de  Lafayette,  and  the  French  Revolution  soon  shot  far 
ahead  of  him.  He  did  not,  however,  feel  any  inclination  to 
emigrate.  His  patriotism,  as  well  as  his  attachment  to  Louis 
XYL,  led  him  to  remain  in  France ;  and  thus  he  was  unable 
to  elude  that  fate  which,  in  1793,  threatened  all  who  were  in 
positions  similar  to  his  and  of  the  same  way  of  thinking. 
He  was  falsely  accused  of  intending  to  emigrate,  by  the 
Administration  of  the  Department  of  Saone  et  Loire;  his 
property  was  placed  under  sequestration ;  and  he  was  arrest- 
ed in  Paris,  at  the  house  in  the  Rue  Saint  Eustache  which 

*  Some  years  later,  Mademoiselle  Alix  de  Vergennes  married  General  de 
Nansouty. 


PREFACE. 


XI 


he  had  inhabited  since  1788.  The  man  who  arrested  him 
had  no  warrant  from  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety  except 
for  the  arrest  of  M.  de  Yergennes's  father.  He  took  the  son 
because  he  lived  with  the  father,  and  both  died  on  the  same 
scaffold  on  the  6th  Thermidor  (24th  July,  1794),  three  days 
before  the  fall  of  Robespierre.* 

M.  de  Yergennes's  death  left  his  unhappy  wife  and  daugh- 
ters unprotected,  and  in  straitened  circumstances,  as  he  had 
sold  his  estate  in  Burgundy  a  short  time  previously,  and  its 
price  had  been  confiscated  by  the  nation.  There  remained 
to  them,  however,  one  friend,  not  powerful,  indeed,  but  full 
of  zeal  and  good  will.  This  was  a  young  man  with  whom 
M.  de  Yergennes  had  become  acquainted  in  the  early  days 
of  the  Revolution,  whose  family  had  formerly  been  of  some 
importance  in  the  commercial  world,  and  also  in  the  civic 
administration  of  Marseilles,  so  that  the  younger  members 
were  taking  their  places  in  the  magistracy  and  in  the  army, 
in  short,  among  "  the  privileged,"  as  the  phrase  then  went. 
This  young  man,.Augustin  Laurent  de  Remusat,  was  born 
at  Yalensoles,  in  Provence,  on  the  28th  of  August,  1762. 
After  having  studied,  with  great  credit,  at  Juilly,  the  former 
seat  of  that  Oratorian  College  which  still  exists  near  Paris, 
he  was  nominated,  at  twenty  years  of  age,  advocate-general 
to  the  Cour  des  Aides  and  the  Charribre  des  Comptes  JReunies  f 
of  Provence.  My  father  has  sketched  the  portrait  of  that 
young  man,  his  arrival  in  Paris,  and  his  life  in  the  midst  of 
the  new  society.  The  following  note  tells,  better  than  I 
could,  how  M.  de  Remusat  loved  and  married  Mademoiselle 
Claire  de  Yergennes : 

"  The  society  of  Aix,  a  city  in  which  nobles  dwelt  and  a 
parliament  assembled,  was  of  the  brilliant  order.  My  father 
lived  a  great  deal  in  society.  He  was  of  an  agreeable  pres- 

*  For  the  text  of  the  accusation  against  M.  de  Vergennes,  see  Appendix. 

f  These  obsolete  institutions  have  no  English  equivalents.  They  are,  re- 
spectively, the  auxiliary  and  superior  courts  established  for  the  examination  of 
the  accounts  of  the  receivers  of  the  money  of  the  state. 


xii  PREFACE. 

ence,  had  a  great  deal  of  pleasant  humor,  fine  and  polished 
manners,  high  spirits,  and  a  reputation  for  gallantry.  He 
sought  and  obtained  all  the  social  success  that  a  young  man 
could  desire.  Nevertheless,  he  attended  sedulously  to  his 
profession,  which  he  liked,  and  he  married,  in  1783,  Made- 
moiselle de  Sannes,  the  daughter  of  the  Procureur- General 
of  his  Compagnie.  This  marriage  was  dissolved  by  the  death 
of  Madame  de  Remusat,  who  died  shortly  after  the  birth  of 
a  daughter. 

"  The  Revolution  broke  out ;  the  supreme  courts  were 
suppressed ;  and  the  settling  of  their  business  was  a  serious 
and  important  affair.  In  order  to  carry  it  through,  the 
Cour  des  Aides  sent  a  deputation  to  Paris.  My  father  was 
one  of  the  delegates.  He  has  often  told  me  that  he  then 
had  occasion  to  see  M.  de  Mirabeau,  deputy  for  Aix,  on  the 
business  of  his  mission  ;  and,  notwithstanding  his  prejudices 
as  an  adherent  of  the  old  parliaments,  he  was  charmed  with 
Mirabeau's  pompous  politeness.  My  father  never  told  me 
details  of  his  manner  of  living,  so  that  I  do  not  know 
what  were  the  circumstances  under  which  he  went  to  the 
house  of  my  grandfather  Yergennes.  He  passed  through 
the  terrible  years  of  the  Revolution  alone  and  unknown  in 
Paris,  and  without  any  personal  mishaps.  Society  no  longer 
existed.  His  company  was  therefore  all  the  more  agreeable, 
and  even  the  more  useful  to  my  grandmother  (Madame  de 
Yergennes),  who  was  involved  in  great  anxieties  and  mis- 
fortunes. My  father  used  to  tell  me  that  my  grandfather 
was  a  commonplace  sort  of  man,  but  he  soon  learned  to  ap- 
preciate my  grandmother  very  highly,  and  she  conceived  a 
liking  for  him.  She  was  a  wise,  moderate-minded  woman, 
who  entertained  no  fancies,  cherished  no  prejudices,  and 
gave  way  to  no  impulses.  She  distrusted  everything  in 
which  there  was  any  exaggeration,  and  detested  affectation 
of  every  kind,  but  she  was  readily  touched  by  solid  worth 
and  by  genuine  feeling ;  while  her  clear-headedness  and  her 
practical,  somewhat  sarcastic  turn  of  mind  preserved  her 


PREFACE. 

from  everything  that  lacked  prudence  or  morality.  Her 
head  was  never  betrayed  by  her  heart ;  but,  as  she  had  suf- 
fered from  the  neglect  of  a  husband  to  whom  she  was  supe- 
rior, she  was  disposed  to  make  inclination  and  choice  the 
ruling  motives  of  marriage. 

"Immediately  after  the  death  of  my  grandfather,  a 
decree  was  issued,  by  which  all  nobles  were  ordered  to  quit 
Paris.  Madame  de  Yergennes  retired  to  Saint  Gratien,  in 
the  valley  of  Montmorency,  with  her  two  daughters,  Claire 
and  Alix ;  and  she  gave  my  father  permission  to  follow  her 
thither.  His  presence  was  precious  to  them.  His  bright 
and  cheerful  nature,  his  amiability,  and  careful  attentions  to 
those  he  loved,  made  him  a  charming  companion.  His  taste 
for  a  quiet  life,  the  country,  and  seclusion,  and  his  cultivated 
mind,  exactly  fitted  him  for  a  family  circle  composed  of  in- 
telligent persons,  and  in  which  education  was  always  going 
on.  I  can  not  believe  that  my  grandmother  did  not  early 
foresee  and  acquiesce  in  that  which  was  destined  to  happen, 
even  supposing  there  was  not  at  that  time  anything  to  read 
in  the  heart  of  her  daughter.  It  is  certain,  for  my  mother 
says  so  in  several  of  her  letters,  that,  although  she  was  then 
only  a  child,  her  prematurely  serious  turn  of  mind,  her  sen- 
sitive and  emotional  nature,  her  vivid  imagination,  and 
finally,  the  combined  influences  of  intimacy,  solitude,  and 
misfortune,  all  united  to  inspire  her  with  an  interest  in  my 
father,  which  had  from  the  first  all  the  characteristics  of  a 
lofty  and  abiding  sentiment.  I  do  not  think  I  have  ever 
met  a  woman  in  whom  so  much  moral  strictness  was  com- 
bined with  so  much  romantic  sensibility  as  in  my  mother. 
Her  youth,  her  extreme  youth,  was,  as  it  were,  steadied  by 
those  fortunate  circumstances  which  bound  her  to  duty  by 
ties  of  passion,  and  procured  for  her  that  rare  combination, 
peace  of  soul  and  the  delightful  agitation  of  the  heart. 

"  She  was  not  tall,  but  her  figure  was  elegant  and  well 
proportioned.  She  was  fair  and  plump ;  indeed,  it  used  to 
be  feared  that  she  would  grow  too  fat.  Her  eyes  were  fine 


xiv  PREFACE. 

and  expressive,  black,  like  her  hair ;  her  features  were  regu- 
lar, but  rather  too  large.  Her  countenance  was  grave,  al- 
most imposing ;  but  the  intelligent  kindliness  of  her  glance 
tempered  the  gravity  of  her  features  very  pleasantly.  Her 
strong,  well-trained,  fertile  intellect  had  certain  virile  quali- 
ties, with  which  the  extreme  vividness  of  her  imagination 
frequently  clashed.  She  possessed  sound  judgment  and 
keen  powers  of  observation,  and  she  was  entirely  unaffected 
in  her  manners  and  in  her  modes  of  expression,  although 
she  was  not  without  a  certain  subtlety  of  ideas.  In  reality, 
she  was  profoundly  reasonable,  but  she  was  headstrong ;  her 
intellect  was  more  reasonable  than  herself.  In  her  youth 
she  lacked  gayety  and  probably  ease,  may  have  appeared  to 
be  pedantic  because  she  was  serious,  affected  because  she  was 
silent,  absent-minded,  and  indifferent  to  almost  all  the  small 
things  of  every-day  life.  But,  with  her  mother,  whose 
cheerful  moods  she  sometimes  crossed,  with  her  husband, 
whose  simple  tastes  and  easy  temper  she  never  crossed,  she 
was  not  wanting  in  richness  and  freedom.  She  had  even  a 
kind  of  gayety  of  her  own,  which  developed  as  she  grew 
older,  when,  having  been  very  absent  and  absorbed  in  her 
own  thoughts  while  she  was  very  young,  she  became  more 
like  her  mother.  I  have  often  thought  that,  if  she  had  lived 
long  enough  to  share  the  house  in  which  I  am  writing  to- 
day, she  would  have  been  the  merriest  of  us  all." 

My  father  wrote  these  lines  in  1857,  at  Laffitte  (Haute- 
Garonne),  where  all  those  whom  he  loved  were  assembled, 
and  we  were  gay  and  happy.  In  quoting  them  I  am  some- 
what outrunning  my  narrative,  for  he  speaks  here  of  his 
mother  as  of  a  woman  and  not  as  of  a  young  girl,  and  Claire 
de  Yergennes,  when  she  married,  early  in  the  year  1796,  was 
hardly  sixteen  years  old. 

M.  and  Mme.  de  K£musat — for  thus  I  shall  designate 
them  henceforth,  for  the  sake  of  clearness  in  my  story — 
lived  sometimes  in  Paris,  and  sometimes  in  a  modest  country 
house  at  Saint  Gratien,  a  residence  which  had  two  strong 


PEEFAGE.  xv 

recommendations — the  beauty  of  the  landscape  and  the  at- 
traction of  the  neighborhood. 

Nearest  and  pleasantest  of  neighbors  were  the  owners  of 
Sannois,  with  whom  Madame  de  Yergennes  was  very  inti- 
mate. Jean  Jacques  Rousseau's  "Confessions,"  Madame 
d'Epinay's  "  Memoires,"  and  a  hundred  works  of  the  last 
century  as  well,  have  made  the  place  and  the  persons  known 
to  the  world.  Madame  d'Houdetot  (Sophie  de  Lalive)  had 
lived  peacefully,  in  her  old  age,  throughout  the  troublous 
time  of  the  Revolution  in  that  country  house,  in  the  society 
of  her  husband  and  of  M.  de  Saint  Lambert.*  Between  the 
famous  trio  and  the  young  couple  at  Saint  Gratien  so  close 
an  intimacy  was  formed  that,  when  the  house  at  Saint  Gra- 
tien was  sold,  my  grandparents  hired  one  within  a  shorter 
distance  of  the  residence  of  their  friends,  and  a  way  of  com- 
munication was  made  between  the  gardens  of  their  respective 
abodes.  By  degrees,  however,  M.  de  Remusat  got  into  the 
habit  of  going  to  Paris  more  and  more  frequently ;  and,  as 
the  times  became  quieter,  he  began  to  think  of  emerging 
from  obscurity,  and  from  the  narrow  circumstances  to  which 
he  was  reduced  by  the  confiscation  of  the  property  of  his 
wife's  father  and  the  loss  of  his  own  place  in  the  magistracy. 
As  is  always  the  case  in  France,  it  was  of  employment  in 
some  public  function  that  he  thought.  He  had  no  relations 
with  the  Government,  or  even  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who 
was  then  Foreign  Minister,  but  he  directed  his  efforts  toward 
that  department,  and  obtained,  if  not  exactly  a  place,  at  least 
an  occupation,  which  was  likely  to  lead  to  a  place,  in  the 
office  of  the  solicitors  to  the  Ministry. 

Besides  the  agreeable  and  intellectual  relations  which 
they  maintained  with  Sannois,  M.  and  Mme.  de  Remusat 
had  formed  an  intimacy  no  less  close,  but  which  was  destined 
to  exercise  a  much  greater  influence  over  their  fortunes, 
with  Madame  de  Beauharnais,  who,  in  1796,  became  the 
wife  of  Bonaparte.  When  her  friend  had  acquired  power 

*  Soe  Appendix. 


xvi  PREFACE. 

through  her  all-powerful  husband,  Madame  de  Yergennes 
applied  to  her  on  behalf  of  her  son-in-law,  who  wished  to 
enter  the  Council  of  State  or  the  Administration.  The 
First  Consul,  however,  or  his  wife,  had  a  different  idea  of 
what  ought  to  be  done.  The  consideration  and  respect  in 
which  Madame  de  Yergennes  was  held,  her  social  station, 
her  name — which  was  allied  both  to  the  old  regime  and  to 
the  new  ideas — gave  a  certain  value  to  the  relations  of  her 
family  with  the  consular  palace,  which  at  that  time  had  but 
little  intercourse  with  Parisian  society.  Quite  unexpectedly, 
M.  de  Remusat  was  appointed  Prefect  of  the  Palace,  in 
1802;  and  shortly  afterward  Madame  de  Remusat  became 
Lady-in-Waiting  (Dame  pour  Accompagner)  to  Madame 
Bonaparte,  a  title  which  was  soon  changed  into  the  better 
sounding  one  of  Lady  of  the  Palace  (Dame  du  Palais). 

in. 

Persons  of  the  way  of  thinking  of  M.  and  Mine,  de 
!Remusat  had  no  sacrifice  to  make  in  casting  in  their  lot 
with  the  new  regime.  They  had  neither  the  extravagant 
sentiments  of  the  Royalists,  nor  the  austerity  of  the  Repub- 
licans. No  doubt  their  attitude  of  mind  approached  more 
nearly  to  that  of  the  Royalists  than  to  that  of  the  Republi- 
« cans,  but  their  royalism  reduced  itself  to  pious  veneration 
for  Louis  XYI.  The  misfortunes  of  that  unhappy  prince 
rendered  his  memory  sacred,  and  his  person  had  always  been 
regarded  in  the  family  of  M.  de  Yergennes  with  peculiar 
respect.;  but  -"Legitimacy"  had  not  yet  been  invented,  and 
those  persons  who  most  deeply  deplored  the  fall  of  the  old 
regime,  or  rather  that  of  the  ancient  dynasty,  did  not  hold 
themselves  under  any  obligation  to  believe  that  everything 
done  in  France  in  the  absence  of  the  Bourbons  was  null  and 
void.  Pure  and  unalloyed  admiration  was  inspired  by  the 
young  general  who  was  reestablishing  material,  if  not  moral 
order,  with  such  .brilliant  success,  in  a  society  which  was  dis- 


PREFACE.  xvii 

tiirbed  after  a  fashion  very  different  from  that  of  those  suc- 
cessive later  times,  in  which  so  many  worthless  "  saviours  " 
have  turned  up. 

Public  functionaries  in  those  days  adhered  to  the  opinion 
which  was  very  natural  under  the  old  regime,  that  an  official 
is  responsible  only  for  what  he  does,  and  not  for  either  the 
acts  or  the  origin  of  the  Government.  The  sense  of  "  soli- 
darity "  does  not  exist  in  absolute  monarchies.  The  parlia- 
mentary regime  has  happily  rendered  us  more  sensitive,  and 
all  honest  people  now  admit  the  collective  responsibility  of 
all  the  agents  of  a  power.  One  could  not  nowadays  serve  a 
government  whose  tendency  and  general  policy  one  did  not 
approve  ;  but  it  was  otherwise  in  former  times.  My  father 
— who  had  more  right  than  any  one  else  to  be  strict  in  these 
matters,  and  who,  perhaps,  owed  somewhat  of  his  extreme 
political  scrupulousness  to  the  difficult  position  in  which  he 
had  seen  his  parents  placed  during  his  own  childhood,  be- 
tween their  private  impressions  and  their  official  duties — 
explains  these  shades  of  difference  in  an  unpublished  letter 
to  M.  Sainte  Beuve,  to  whom  he  had  communicated  certain 
biographical  details  for  an  article  in  the  "  Revue  des  Deux 
Mondes." 

"  It  wras  not  as  a  pis  alien*,  from  necessity,  weakness,  or 
as  a  temporary  expedient,  that  my  parents  attached  them- 
selves to  the  new  regime.  Of  their  free  will  and  with  entire 
confidence  they  united  themselves  with  its  fortunes.  If  you 
add  to  that  all  the  pleasures  of  an  easy  and  prominent  posi- 
tion to  be  stepped  into  from  one  of  poverty  and  obscurity, 
the  curiosity  which  a  court  of  so  novel  a  kind  inspired,  the 
incomparable  interest  of  the  spectacle  of  a  man  like  the 
Emperor  at  an  epoch  when  he  was  irreproachable,  young, 
and  still  amiable,  you  can  easily  conceive  the  attraction 
which  induced  my  parents  to  overlook  all  that  was  in  reality 
opposed  to  their  tastes,  their  reason,  and  even  their  true  in- 
terests in  this  new  position.  At  the  end  of  two  or  three 
years,  they  had  learned  too  well  that  a  court  is  always  a 


xviii  PREFACE. 

court,  and  that  all  is  not  pleasure  in  the  personal  service  of 
an  absolute  master,  even  though  he  may  charm  and  dazzle. 
But  this  did  not  prevent  their  being  for  a  long  time  well 
enough  satisfied  with  their  lot.  My  mother  especially  was 
much  amused  with  all  that  passed  before  her  eyes,  and  she 
was  on  very  good  terms  with  the  Empress,  who  was  ex- 
tremely kind  and  generous,  while  she  enthusiastically  ad- 
mired the  Emperor.  He  treated  my  mother  with  flattering 
distinction.  She  was  almost  the  only  woman  with  whom  he 
ever  talked.  My  mother  would  sometimes  say,  after  the 
Empire  had  ceased  to  exist : 

'  Va,  je  t'ai  trop  aim6  pour  ne  pas  te  hair! ' ' 

Of  the  impressions  made  by  the  new  Court  upon  the 
new  Lady  of  the  Palace  we  have  no  record.  The  security 
of  the  Post-office  was  very  doubtful.  Madame  de  Yergennes 
burned  all  her  daughter's  letters,  and  the  correspondence  of 
the  latter  with  her  husband  does  not  commence  until  some 
years  later,  during  the  Emperor's  journeys  in  Italy  and  Ger- 
many. Nevertheless,  we  can  perceive  from  her  Memoirs, 
although  they  do  not  abound  in  personal  details,  how  strange 
and  novel  everything  seemed  to  so  very  young  a  woman, 
transplanted  all  of  a  sudden  into  this  palace,  and  an  eye- 
witness of  the  private  life  of  the  glorious  chief  of  an  un- 
known government.  She  was  very  serious,  as,  when  they 
are  not  very  frivolous,  the  young  are  apt  to  be,  and  much 
disposed  to  observation  and  reflection.  She  seems  to  have 
had  no  taste  for  display,  no  great  solicitude  about  external 
things,  no  turn  for  gossip  or  the  running  down  of  other  peo- 
ple, no  love  of  talking  or  display.  "What  was  thought  of  her 
at  that  time  ?  "We  can  not  tell.  "We  only  know,  from  cer- 
tain passages  in  sundry  letters  and  memoirs,  that  she  was 
considered  clever,  and  that  people  were  a  little  afraid  of  her. 
Probably,  however,  her  companions  thought  her  pedantic 
rather  than  dangerous.  She  had  a  considerable  "  success," 
especially  at  first ;  for  in  its  early  days  the  Court  was  not 


PREFACE.  xix 

numerous  —  there  were  few  distinctions  or  favors  to  be 
schemed  for,  rivalry  was  not  very  brisk  or  ardent.  Little  by 
little,  however,  this  little  society  became  a  real  court.  Now, 
courtiers  are  always  afraid  of  intellect,  and  especially  of  that 
disposition,  unintelligible  to  them,  which  clever  people  have 
to  interest  themselves  in  a  disinterested  manner,  so  to  speak, 
in  knowing  things  and  judging  characters,  without  even 
thinking  of  turning  their  knowledge  to  their  own  advantage. 
Courtiers  always  suspect  that  every  opinion  has  a  hidden  aim. 
Persons  of  quick  intellect  are  very  strongly  impressed  by  the 
spectacle  of  human  affairs,  even  when  they  are  merely  look- 
ing on  at  them.  And  that  faculty  is  the  most  incomprehen- 
sible to  those  who  do  not  possess  it,  and  who  attribute  its 
effects  to  some  personal  motive,  or  interested  calculation. 
They  suspect  intrigue  or  resentment  every  time  that  they 
observe  a  movement  in  any  direction,  but  they  have  no  idea 
of  the  spontaneous  and  gratuitous  action  of  the  mind.  Every- 
one has  been  exposed  to  mistrust  of  this  kind,  which  is  more 
to  be  dreaded  when  a  woman,  endowed  with  excessive  ac- 
tivity of  imagination,  and  drawn  on  by  her  intelligence  to 
form  opinions  on  matters  out  of  her  sphere,  is  in  question. 
Many  persons,  especially  in  that  somewhat  coarse  society, 
would  detect  egotism  and  pretension  in  her  life  and  conver- 
sation, and  accuse  her  unduly  of  ambition. 

That  her  husband  was  entirely  devoid  of  ambition,  and 
free  from  any  disposition  to  intrigue,  was  evident  to  all. 
The  position  in  which  the  favor  of  the  First  Consul  had 
placed  him  did  not  suit  him  ;  he  would,  no  doubt,  have  pre- 
ferred some  laborious  administrative  function  to  one  which 
demanded  nothing  of  him  but  suavity  and  a  graceful  de- 
meanor. From  the  "  Memoirs,"  from  his  own  letters,  and 
from  my  father's  account  of  him,  we  gather  that  M.  de 
Ke*musat  was  a  man  of  discreet  conduct,  with  keen  wits,  and 
a  cheerful  and  even  temper — not  at  all  a  person  calculated 
to  make  enemies.  Indeed,  he  would  never  have  had  any, 
but  for  a  certain  shyness,  which,  little  as  it  seems  to  harmo- 


XX  PREFACE. 

nize  with  conversational  powers  and  an  agreeable  manner,  is, 
nevertheless,  occasionally  allied  with  them.  His  taste  for 
quiet  life,  and  some  indolence  and  timidity  of  character,  had 
impelled  him  more  and  more  toward  retirement  and  isola- 
tion. Modesty  and  self-esteem  mingled  in  his  nature ;  and, 
without  rendering  him  insensible  to  the  honors  of  the  post 
which  he  had  obtained,  they  sometimes  made  him  ashamed 
of  the  solemn  trifles  to  which  that  very  post  forced  him  to 
devote  his  life.  He  believed  himself  to  be  made  for  better 
things,  but  he  did  not  care  for  toiling  in  search  of  that  which 
did  not  come  to  him  of  itself.  He  took  but  little  pleasure 
in  expressing  the  art,  in  which  he  was  probably  not  deficient, 
of  managing  men.  He  did  not  love  to  put  himself  forward, 
and  his  indolent  temperament  induced  him  to  let  things  take 
their  chance.  He  afterward  became  a  hard-working  prefect, 
but  he  was  a  negligent  and  inactive  courtier.  He  employed 
his  skill  simply  to  avoid  disputes,  and  he  discharged  his  offi- 
cial functions  with  quiet  good  taste.  After  having  had  many 
friends,  and  entered  into  numerous  relations,  he  let  them 
drop  through,  or  at  least  he  never  seemed  to  do  anything  to 
retain  them.  Unless  great  care  be  taken,  ties  are  loosened, 
recollections  are  effaced,  rivalries  are  formed,  and  all  the 
chances  of  ambition  escape  one's  grasp.  M.  de  Kemusat  had 
no  skill  in  playing  a  part,  forming  connections,  bringing 
people  together,  or  contriving  the  opportunities  of  fortune 
or  success.  He  seems  never  to  have  regretted  this.  It 
would  be  easy  for  me  to  trace  his  motives— to  depict  his 
character  in  detail,  and  to  narrate  his  errors,  his  grievances, 
and  even  his  sufferings ;  for  was  he  not  my  grandfather  ? 

The  first  severe  trial  which  M.  and  Mme.  de  Eemusat 
had  to  endure  in  their  new  position  was  the  murder  of  the 
Due  d'Enghien.  How  profound  was  the  grief  which  they 
felt  when  the  man  whom  they  ardently  admired,  as  the  ex- 
press image  of  power  and  genius,  and  whom  they  strove  to 
love,  stained  his  hands  with  innocent  blood,  and  they  were 
forced  to  recognize  that  such  a  deed  was  simply  the  result  of 


PREFACE.  xxi 

a  cold  and  inhuman  calculation,  the  following  narrative  will 
prove.  It  will,  indeed,  be  seen  that  the  impression  made 
by  the  crime  upon  all  honest  persons  at  the  Court  was  even 
deeper  than  that  which  it  produced  outside  among  the  gen- 
eral public,  who  had  become  almost  indifferent,  through  cus- 
tom, to  deeds  of  this  kind.  Even  among  the  Royalists,  who 
were  absolutely  inimical  to  the  Government,  the  event  caused 
more  sorrow  than  indignation,  so  perverted  had  the  public 
mind  become  in  political  matters  and  respecting  State  ex- 
pedients !  Where  could  the  men  of  that  day  have  acquired 
principles  ?  Was  it  the  old  regime  or  the  Terror  which  could 
have  instructed  them  ?  A  short  time  afterward,  the  Sover- 
eign Pontiff  came  to  Paris,  and,  among  the  reasons  which 
made  him  hesitate  to  crown  the  new  Charlemagne,  it  is  very 
doubtful  whether  this  one  was  ever  even  weighed  for  a  mo- 
ment. The  press  was  dumb,  and  men  must  be  possessed  of 
information  before  they  are  aroused  to  anger.  Let  us  hope 
that  civilization  has  now  made  so  much  progress  that  a 
repetition  of  similar  incidents  would  be  impossible.  We 
should,  however,  be  restrained  from  optimism  on  this  point 
by  the  remembrance  of  what  we  have  witnessed  in  our  own 
time. 

The  following  Memoirs  are  an  exact  record  of  the  life  of 
the  author,  and  the  history  of  the  early  years  of  the  present 
century.  They  show  us  what  changes  the  establishment  of 
the  Empire  effected  at  the  Court,  and  how  lif e  there  and  its 
relations  became  more  difficult  and  embarrassing;  how  by 
degrees  the  prestige  of  the  Emperor  declined,  in  proportion 
as  he  misused  his  great  gifts,  his  power,  and  his  chances. 
Mistakes,  reverses,  and  failures  were  multiplied ;  and  at  the 
same  time  the  adhesion  of  the  earliest  admirers  of  the  Em- 
peror became  less  fervent,  and  the  manner  of  serving  re- 
flected the  mode  of  thinking.  Two  parties,  the  Beauhar- 
nais  and  the  Bonapartes,  disputed  the  favor  of  the  sovereign 
master  with  each  other ;  and  M.  and  Mme.  de  Remusat  were 
regarded  as  belonging  to  the  former,  by  reason  of  their  natu- 


xxii  PREFACE. 

ral  feelings  and  their  family  relations.  Their  position  was 
consequently  affected  in  no  small  degree  by  the  downfall  and 
departure  of  the  Empress  Josephine.  Everything  was,  how- 
ever, much  changed,  and,  when  her  lady-in-waiting  followed 
her  into  her  retirement,  the  Emperor  seems  to  have  made 
but  little  effort  to  detain  Mme.  de  Remusat.  Perhaps  he 
was  glad  that  a  person  of  good  sense  and  quick  intelligence 
should  watch  over  his  forsaken  and  somewhat  imprudent 
wife ;  but  it  must  also  be  taken  into  account  that  my  grand- 
mother's delicate  health,  her  love  of  quiet,  and  her  distaste 
for  all  festivities,  had  isolated  her  almost  entirely  from  court 
life. 

Her  husband,  wearied  and  disgusted,  gave  way  every  day 
more  and  more  to  his  discontent,  and  to  his  inability  to  lay 
himself  out  to  please  the  great  personages  who  were  either 
cold  or  hostile  to  him.  He  neglected  his  functions  as  Cham- 
berlain in  order  to  concentrate  himself  on  his  duties  as  "  Ad- 
ministrator of  Theatres,"  but  the  latter  he  fulfilled  admirably. 
A  great  part  of  the  actual  organization  of  the  Theatre  Fran- 
$ais  is  due  to  him.  My  father,  born  in  1797,  and  very  young 
when  his  father  was  Chamberlain  to  the  Emperor,  was  re- 
markable as  a  child  for  his  intelligence  and  his  observation, 
and  he  retained  a  very  distinct  recollection  of  that  period  of 
discouragement  and  ennui.  He  has  told  me  that  he  frequent- 
ly knew  his  father  to  return  from  Saint  Cloud  utterly  worn 
out,  and  tried  beyond  his  patience  by  the  burden  which  the 
arbitrariness  and  the  ill  temper  of  the  Emperor  laid  upon  all 
who  approached  him.  That  the  child  was  an  eye-  and  ear- 
witness  of  his  complaints  at  those  moments  in  which  re- 
straints are  cast  off  is  evident,  for,  when  he  was  more  master 
of  himself,  he  was  fain  to  represent  himself  as  satisfied  with 
his  master  and  his  position,  and  he  endeavored  to  conceal  his 
vexations  from  his  son.  Perhaps  he  was  better  calculated  to 
serve  the  simple,  tranquil,  sober,  intellectual  Bonaparte,  while 
still  a  novice  in  the  pleasures  of  sovereignty,  than  the  llase 
and  intoxicated  Napoleon,  who  exhibited  the  worst  taste 


PREFACE. 

possible  on  all  State  occasions,  and  became  more  exacting 
every  day  in  the  matter  of  ceremonial  and  adulatory  observ- 
ance. 

An  apparently  trifling  circumstance,  whose  gravity  was 
not  at  first  perceived  by  those  whom  it  concerned,  increased 
the  difficulties  of  the  situation,  and  hurried  on  the  inevitable 
catastrophe.  Although  the  history  of  the  affair  is  insignifi- 
cant, it  will  not  be  read  without  interest,  and  it  sheds  a  light 
upon  times  now  happily  far  removed  from  us,  and  which 
Frenchmen,  if  the  lessons  of  the  past  are  to  avail,  will  not 
suffer  to  return. 

The  celebrated  Lavoisier  was  very  intimate  with  M.  de 
Yergennes.  He  died,  as  every  one  knows,  on  the  scaffold  on 
the  19th  Floreal,  year  2  (9th  May,  1794).  His  widow,  who 
contracted  a  second  marriage  with  M.  Rumford,  a  German 
savant,  or  at  least  a  commercial  man  aiming  at  science — for 
he  was  the  inventor  of  the  Prussian  stoves,  and  also  of  the 
thermometer  that  bears  his  name — remained  on  terms  of 
close  friendship  with  Madame  de  Yergennes  and  her  family. 
This  second  marriage  had  not  been  happy,  and  compassion 
was,  very  justly,  excited  on  behalf  of  the  ill-treated  wife,  who 
was  compelled  to  invoke  the  protection  of  the  law  against 
unendurable  tyranny  and  exaction.  As  M.  Rumford  was  a 
foreigner,  it  was  in  the  power  of  the  police  to  procure  infor- 
mation respecting  him  from  his  own  country,  to  reprimand 
him  severely,  and  even  to  oblige  him  to  leave  France.  This, 
I  believe,  was  eventually  done,  and  it  was  at  the  request  of 
my  grandmother  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  Fouche  took 
up  the  matter.  Madame  Eumford  was  anxious  to  evince 
her  gratitude  to  those  personages,  and  the  following  is  my 
father's  account  of  the  results  of  her  wish : 

"My  mother  consented  to  invite  Madame  Rumford  to 
dinner,  to  meet  M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  Fouche.  Surely, 
it  was  not  an  act  of  opposition  to  entertain  the  High  Cham- 
berlain and  the  Minister  of  Police  at  her  table !  Neverthe- 
less, that  meeting — so  naturally  brought  about,  the  motive  of 


xxiv  PREFACE. 

which,  was  as  insignificant  as  it  was  harmless,  but  which  was, 
I  acknowledge,  unusual,  and  never  occurred  again — was  rep- 
resented to  the  Emperor,  in  the  reports  that  were  sent  out  to 
him  in  Spain,  as  a  political  conference,  and  the  proof  of  an 
important  coalition.  Although  I  do  not  contend  that  it  was 
impossible  for  M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  Fouche  to  have 
taken  advantage  of  the  opportunity  of  talking  together ;  or 
deny  that  my  mother,  perceiving  the  respective  inclinations 
of  the  two,  or  put  upon  the  scent  by  something  that  was  said 
by  M.  de  Talleyrand,  might  have  regarded  the  occasion  as  a 
favorable  one  for  bringing  about  an  interview  which  amused 
herself  at  the  same  time  that  it  was  useful  to  one  of  her 
friends,  I  have  not  the  slightest  reason  for  supposing  that 
such  was  the  case.  I  am,  on  the  contrary,  perfectly  certain 
of  having  heard  my  father  and  mother  quote  this  incident, 
when  reverting  to  it  some  years  afterward,  as  an  instance  of 
the  unexpected  importance  which  may  be  assumed  by  a  for- 
tuitous and  insignificant  matter,  and  say,  smilingly,  that  Ma- 
dame Rumford  little  knew  what  she  had  cost  them. 

"  They  added  that  on  that  occasion  the  word  i  triumvirate ' 
had  been  uttered,  and  my  mother  had  said,  laughingly,  4  My 
dear,  I  am  sorry  for  it ;  but  your  lot  could  only  be  that  of 
Lepidus.'  My  father  also  said  that  certain  persons  of  the 
Court,  not  enemies  of  his,  had  sometimes  spoken  of  '  the 
Conference '  to  him  as  a  fact,  and  had  said,  though  with- 
out any  hostile  intention,  £E"ow  that  it  is  all  over,  tell 
us  what  it  was  about,  and  what  it  was  you  really  meant 
to  do?'" 

This  narrative  gives  us  an  insight  into  the  life  of  Courts, 
and  also  testifies  to  the  intimacy  of  my  grandparents  with 
M.  de  Talleyrand.  Although  the  former  Bishop  of  Autun 
does  not  seem  to  have  been  actuated  in  this  particular  in- 
stance by  that  kind  of  feeling  which  he  habitually  carried 
into  his  relations  with  women,  he  both  liked  and  admired 
Mme.  de  Remusat.  I  have  found  amusing  evidence  of  his 
sentiments  in  a  sketch  of  her  which  he  wrote,  on  the  official 


PREFACE.  xxv 

paper  of  the  Senate,  during  the  leisure  time  of  a  sitting  at 
which  he  presided  as  "Vice-Grand  Elector,"  probably  in 
1811: 

"  CONSERVATIVE  SENATE,  ) 
"  LUXEMBOURG,  April  29th.  } 

"  I  have  a  fancy  for  commencing  the  portrait  of  Clari. 
She  is  not  what  the  world  calls  a  beauty,  but  every  one 
agrees  in  pronouncing  her  an  agreeable  woman.  She  is 
twenty-eight  or  twenty-nine  years  old,  and  she  is  neither 
more  nor  less  blooming  than  she  ought  to  be  at  twenty-eight. 
Her  figure  is  good,  her  carriage  is  graceful  and  unaffected. 
Clari  is  not  thin  ;  she  is  only  slight  and  refined.  Her  com- 
plexion is  not  brilliant,  but  she  has  the  special  charm  of  look- 
ing fairer  in  proportion  as  she  is  in  a  stronger  light.  To  de- 
scribe Clari  in  a  sentence,  let  me  say  that  the  better  she  is 
known  the  more  amiable  she  appears. 

"  Clari  has  large,  black  eyes ;  their  long  lids  give  an  ex- 
pression of  mingled  tenderness  and  vivacity  which  is  striking, 
even  when  her  mind  is  inactive  and  she  does  not  want  to 
express  anything.  Those  occasions  are,  however,  very  rare. 
Lively  ideas,  quick  perception,  a  vivid  imagination,  exquisite 
sensibility,  and  constant  kindness  are  expressed  in  her  glance. 
To  give  an  idea  of  that,  it  would  be  necessary  to  paint  the 
soul  which  depicts  itself  in  it,  and  then  Clari  would  be  the 
most  beautiful  of  beings.  I  am  not  sufficiently  well  versed 
in  the  rales  of  drawing  to  know  whether  Clari' s  features  are 
quite  regular.  I  believe  her  nose  is  too  thick ;  but  I  know 
that  she  has  beautiful  eyes,  lips,  and  teeth.  A  great  part  of 
her  forehead  is  generally  hidden  by  her  hair,  and  that  is  a 
pity.  Her  smile  is  rendered  as  arch  as  it  is  sweet  by  her  two 
dimples.  Her  dress  is  often  careless,  but  never  in  bad  taste, 
and  she  is  scrupulously  neat.  That  neatness  forms  part  of 
the  system  of  order  and  decorum  from  which  Clari  never 
deviates.  Clari  is  not  rich,  but  as  she  is  moderate  in  her 
tastes  and  above  caprice  and  fancy,  she  despises  extravagance, 
and  has  never  perceived  that  her  fortune  is  limited,  except 


xxvi  PREFACE. 

when  she  has  been  obliged  to  restrain  her  benevolence.  But, 
besides  the  art  of  giving,  she  has  a  thousand  other  ways  of 
conferring  kindnesses.  Always  ready  to  commend  good 
deeds  and  to  excuse  faults,  her  mind  is  always  bent  on 
beneficent  purposes.  Clari  affords  us  a  striking  proof  of 
how  much  superior  a  kindly  wit  is  to  talent  which  produces 
only  severity,  criticism,  and  satire.  She  is  more  ingenious 
in  her  manner  of  passing  favorable  judgments  than  ever  was 
malignity  in  the  art  of  suggesting  the  false  and  suppressing 
the  true. 

"  Clari  always  vindicates  those  whose  part  she  takes,  but 
without  offending  those  whom  she  confutes.  Clari  has  a 
large  and  cultivated  mind.  I  know  no  one  who  can  talk 
better  than  she ;  but  she  exhibits  her  superior  information 
only  when  she  is  giving  one  a  proof  of  her  confidence  and 
friendship.  Clari's  husband  knows  that  he  possesses  a  trea- 
sure, and  has  the  good  sense  to  appreciate  it.  Clari  is  a  good 
mother ;  that  is  her  reward." 

The  Emperor  was  displeased  at  the  intimacy  between  the 
Grand  Chamberlain  and  the  First  Chamberlain,  and  these 
Memoirs  will  show  that  he  tried  more  than  once  to  set  the 
two  at  variance.  He  even  succeeded  for  a  time  in  alienating 
them.  But  their  intimacy  was  unbroken  when  M.  Talley- 
rand fell  into  disgrace. 

It  is  well  known  that  honorable  motives  on  his  part  led 
to  a  violent  altercation  between  himself  and  his  imperial 
master  in  January,  1809,  at  the  period  of  the  Spanish  war, 
which  was  the  beginning  of  the  misfortunes  of  the  empire, 
and  the  result  of  the  Emperor's  errors.  Both  M.  de  Talley- 
rand and  M.  Fouche  predicted,  or  at  least  foreboded,  that 
public  disapprobation  and  suspicion  would  be  aroused. 
"Throughout  the  whole  empire,"  writes  M.  Thiers,*  "hate 
was  beginning  to  take  the  place  of  love."  This  change  was 
taking  place  among  officials  as  well  as  citizens.  Moreover, 
M.  de  Montesquiou,  a  member  of  the  Legislature,  who  suc- 
*  "Histoire  du  Consulat  et  de  1'Empire,"  vol.  xi.,  p.  312. 


PREFACE.  xxvii 

ceeded  M.  de  Talleyrand  in  his  place  at  court,  was  a  less 
important  personage  than  the  latter,  who  had  relegated  to 
the  First  Chamberlain  not  only  the  troublesome  portions  of 
the  duties  of  his  post,  but  also  those  which  were  agreeable, 
and  which  conferred  distinction.  It  was  a  "  come-down  "  to 
lose  a  chief  whose  own  importance  enhanced  that  of  the 
position  next  below  him.  Truly  this  was  a  strange  time ! 

Talleyrand,  though  in  disgrace  as  a  minister,  and  as  the 
holder  of  one  of  the  highest  posts  at  Court,  had  not  forfeited 
the  Emperor's  confidence.  The  latter  would  send  for  him 
every  now  and  then,  and  freely  disclose  the  secret  of  the 
question  or  the  circumstance  on  which  he  desired  his  advice. 
These  consultations  went  on  to  the  end,  even  at  those  times 
when  the  Emperor  was  talking  of  sending  M.  de  Talleyrand 
to  Yincennes.  In  return,  M.  de  Talleyrand  would  enter  into 
his  views,  and  advise  him  with  perfect  frankness ;  and  so 
this  strange  intercourse  was  carried  on  as  if  nothing  had 
happened  between  them. 

State  policy  and  the  greatness  of  his  own  position  afford- 
ed certain  privileges  and  consolations  to  M.  de  Talleyrand 
which  were  beyond  the  reach  of  a  chamberlain  or  a  lady-in- 
waiting.  Those  who  are  in  close  contact  with  absolute  power 
do  not  foresee  that  the  day  must  come  when  their  feelings 
will  clash  with  their  interests,  and  some  of  their  duties  with 
others.  They  forget  that  there  are  principles  of  government 
which  must  be  guarded  by  constitutional  guarantees.  They 
yield  to  the  natural  desire  to  be  "  somebodies  "  in  the  state, 
to  serve  the  established  authority;  they  do  not  study  the 
nature  and  conditions  of  that  authority.  So  long  as  it  exacts 
nothing  against  their  conscience,  they  serve  it  in  the  sphere 
to  which  it  has  appointed  them.  But  the  hour  comes  when, 
without  exacting  anything  new  from  them,  it  carries  extrava- 
gance, violence,  and  injustice  to  such  a  height  that  it  becomes 
hard  to  obey  it,  even  in  things  of  no  moment ;  they  remain, 
nevertheless,  bound  to  obedience,  while  in  their  inmost  soul 
they  are  full  of  indignation  and  of  pain.  Then  comes  actual 


xxviii  PREFACE. 

desire  for  its  fall.  It  may  be  said  that  their  course  is  simple ; 
let  them  resign.  But  they  are  afraid  of  giving  rise  to  rumor 
and  scandal,  of  being  neither  understood  nor  approved  by 
public  opinion.  Moreover,  no  contract  binds  the  servants  of 
the  state  to  the  conduct  of  the  chief  of  the  state.  Having 
no  rights,  they  would  seem  to  have  no  duties.  They  are 
powerless  for  prevention,  and  are,  therefore,  not  afraid  of 
having  to  expiate  errors.  Thus  people  thought  in  the  reign 
of  Louis  XIV.,  and  thus  they  still  think  in  a  great  part  of 
Europe ;  it  was  thus  they  thought  under  Napoleon,  and  per- 
haps they  will  be  of  the  same  opinion  again.  So  shameful 
and  wretched  a  thing  is  absolute  power !  It  paralyzes  both 
the  honest  scruples  and  the  real  duties  of  honest  men. 


IY. 

Traces  of  these  convictions,  or  at  least  of  their  germ,  may 
be  discerned  in  the  correspondence  of  M.  and  Madame  de 
Hemusat,  and  all  things  contributed  to  confirm  them.  Direct 
communication  with  the  Emperor  became  more  and  more 
infrequent,  and  his  charm  of  manner,  though  still  powerful, 
failed  to  weaken  the  impression  made  by  his  policy.  The 
divorce  of  the  Empress  restored  to  Madame  de  Remusat,  in 
great  part,  her  freedom  of  judgment  and  the  disposal  of  her 
time.  She  attached  herself  to  the  Empress  Josephine  in  her 
disgrace,  a  proceeding  not  calculated  to  raise  her  in  the  esti- 
mation of  the  Court.  Her  husband  soon  after  retired  from 
the  post  of  Keeper  of  the  "Wardrobe,  under  circumstances 
which  are  detailed  in  these  Memoirs,  and  the  coolness  in- 
creased. I  use  the  word  "  coolness "  advisedly,  because  in 
certain  pamphlets  written  against  my  father  it  was  alleged 
that  his  family  had  been  guilty  of  grave  offenses,  at  which 
the  Emperor  was  much  incensed.  That  this  was  quite 
untrue  is  amply  proved  by  the  fact  that  although  M.  de 
Ke'musat  resigned  the  post  of  Keeper  of  the  Wardrobe,  he 
continued  to  be  Chamberlain  and  Supervisor  of  Theatres. 


PREFACE.  xxix 

He  merely  gave  up  the  most  troublesome  and  most  onerous 
of  his  offices.  Xo  doubt  those  habits  of  intimacy  and  con- 
fidence which  arise  in  common  every-day  life  were  weak- 
ened by  his  relinquishment  of  that  post ;  but,  on  the  other 
hand,  he  gained  greater  freedom  and  more  frequent  inter- 
course, both  with  his  family  and  with  society,  and,  as  they 
were  no  longer  restricted  to  the  drawing-rooms  of  the  Tuile- 
ries  and  St.  Cloud,  both  husband  and  wife  were  enabled  to 
bring  more  clear-sightedness  and  independence  of  judgment 
to  bear  upon  the  policy  of  their  sovereign.  Before  the  final 
disasters,  aided  by  the  advice  and  predictions  of  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand, they  foresaw  the  fall  of  the  Empire,  and  were  ena- 
bled to  choose  between  the  possible  solutions  of  the  problem 
then  in  course  of  working  out.  There  was  no  hope  that  the 
Emperor  would  be  satisfied  with  a  peace  more  humiliating  to 
himself  than  to  France,  and  indeed  Europe  was  no  longer  in 
the  humor  to  gratify  him  even  to  that  extent. 

The  public  mind  turned  naturally  toward  the  return  of 
the  Bourbons,  notwithstanding  certain  drawbacks,  which 
were  but  dimly  apprehended.  The  salons  of  Paris,  without 
being  actually  Royalist,  were  anti-revolutionary.  At  this 
epoch  the  plan  of  making  the  Bonapartes  heads  of  the  Con- 
servative and  Catholic  party  had  not  yet  been  invented. 
To  bring  back  the  Bourbons  was  a  very  momentous  reso- 
lution, and  it  was  not  adopted  without  struggles,  anx- 
ieties, and  apprehensions  of  all  sorts.  My  father  regarded 
the  painful  recollection  which  he  always  retained  of  the  at- 
titude of  his  family  in  1814 — a  family  so  simple,  so  honor- 
able, and  so  unpretending — as  a  useful  political  lesson,  one 
which  contributed,  as  much  as  his  own  reflections,  to  lead 
him  to  believe  that  simplicity  and  straightforwardness  are 
the  truest  policy.  He  records  in  the  following  words  his 
own  observations  on  the  state  of  feeling  that  prevailed  at 
the  fall  of  the  Empire  : 

"  Policy  alone  reconciled  my  family  to  the  Restoration. 
My  father  never  for  a  moment  regarded  his  own  acquiescence 


xxx  PREFACE. 

otherwise  than  as  an  absolute  necessity,  of  which  he  volun- 
tarily accepted  the  consequences.  It  would  have  been  foolish 
to  conceal  the  nature  of  those  consequences,  or  to  have  en- 
deavored to  avoid  them  altogether;  but  they  might  have 
been  more  firmly  resisted,  or  at  least  some  effort  might  have 
been  made  to  reduce  their  proportions.  My  mother,  as  a 
woman,  was  influenced  by  the  sentimental  aspect  of  Bour- 
bonism,  and  allowed  herself  to  be  carried  away  by  the  en- 
thusiasm of  the  moment.  In  every  great  political  movement 
there  is  a  fascination,  unless  one  is  preserved  from  it  by  party 
spirit ;  and  this  sympathy,  combined  with  the  national  taste 
for  declamation,  has  a  large  share  in  the  absurdities  which 
accompany  every  change  of  government.  My  mother  was, 
however,  disgusted  from  the  first  by  the  exaggeration  of  sen- 
timent, of  opinion,  and  of  ridiculous  language,  that  prevailed. 
The  humiliating  and  insolent  side  of  the  Restoration,  as  in- 
deed of  every  restoration,  is  what  shocks  me  the  most ;  but, 
if  the  Royalists  had  not  gone  too  far,  a  great  deal  would  have 
been  overlooked.  The  things  of  this  kind  which  sensible 
folk  will  endure  are  surprising.  I  still  feel  grateful  to  my 
father  because,  in  the  very  first  days  of  the  Monarchy,  he 
somewhat  sharply  rebuked  a  person  who  was  advocating  in 
our  salon  the  extreme  doctrines  of  Legitimacy.  Neverthe- 
less, we  had  to  accept  this  Legitimacy  under  a  more  politic 
form.  The  word  itself  was,  I  -believe,  sanctioned  by  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  and  thence  ensued  an  inevitable  train  of  conse- 
quences which  speedily  developed  themselves." 

This  is  not  merely  an  historical  judgment  of  my  father's ; 
at  that  time  he  was  beginning,  notwithstanding  his  youth, 
to  think  for  himself,  and  to  guide,  or  at  least  to  influence,  the 
political  opinions  of  his  parents.  As  I  shall  soon  be  in  a 
position  to  publish  the  reminiscences  of  his  youth,  I  will  not 
dwell  upon  them  here.  I  must,  however,  mention  him  in 
connection  with  the  memoirs  of  his  mother,  as  he  had  more 
to  do  with  them  than  might  be  supposed. 

I  have  not  hitherto  alluded  to  one  of  the  most  character- 


PREFACE. 

istic  traits  of  her  whose  life  I  have  undertaken  to  narrate. 
She  was  a  tender,  careful,  and  admirable  mother.  Her  son 
Charles,  born  on  the  24th  Yentose,  year  5  (March  14,  1797), 
cheered  her  from  his  childhood  with  the  hopes  which  he  af- 
terward realized,  and,  as  he  grew  in  years  and  intelligence, 
aroused  in  her  intellectual  tastes  similar  to  his  own.  Her 
second  son,  Albert,  was  born  five  years  later  than  Charles, 
and  died  in  1830.  His  faculties  were  never  completely  de- 
veloped ;  he  remained  a  child  until  the  end.  She  had  tender 
compassion  for  him,  and  lavished  upon  him  care  so  unceasing 
and  devoted  that  it  was  admirable  even  in  a  mother.  But 
her  great  love  was  for  her  first-born,  and  never  was  filial  or 
maternal  affection  founded  on  more  striking  resemblance  in 
mind  and  character.  Her  letters  are  full  of  her  maternal 
tenderness.  The  following  is  addressed  to  her  beloved  son, 
when  he  was  just  sixteen.  I  think  it  will  convey  a  favorable 
impression  of  both,  and  throw  a  light  on  the  history  of  their 
after  lives : 

VICHY,  July  25, 1813. 

"  I  have  been  suffering  from  a  severe  sore  throat  for  the 
last  few  days,  and  time  has  hung  heavily,  my  child ;  to-day 
I  feel  a  little  better,  and  I  am  going  to  amuse  myself  by 
writing  to  you.  Besides,  you  have  been  scolding  me  for  my 
silence,  and  reproaching  me  too  often  with  your  four  letters. 
I  will  no  longer  be  behindhand  with  you,  and  this  letter,  I 
think,  will  entitle  me  to  scold  you  in  my  turn,  if  an  oppor- 
tunity offers.  My  dear  boy,  I  follow  you  step  by  step  in  all 
your  studies,  and  I  see  you  are  full  of  work  during  this 
month  of  July,  which  I  am  passing  so  monotonously.  I 
know  pretty  well,  too,  all  you  say  and  do  on  Thursdays  and 
Sundays.  Madame  de  Grasse  *  tells  me  of  your  little  talks, 
and  amuses  me  with  it  all.  For  instance,  she  told  me  that 

*  Madame  de  Grasse  was  the  widow  of  an  emigre,  who  lived  in  my  grand- 
mother's house  and  was  very  intimate  with  her.  Her  son,  Count  Gustave  de 
Grasse,  was  a  lieutenant-colonel  in  the  Royal  Guard,  and  lived  on  terms  of  the 


xxxii  PREFACE. 

the  other  day  you  had  praised  me  to  her,  and  said  that  when 
you  and  I  talk  together  you  are  sometimes  tempted  to  think 
me  too  clever.  But  you  need  not  be  checked  by  any  fear  of 
that,  for  you,  my  dear  child,  have  at  least  as  much  wit  as  I. 
I  tell  you  so  frankly,  because  that  gift,  although  an  advan- 
tage, needs  many  other  things  to  support  it,  and  therefore 
you  may  take  my  words  rather  as  warning  than  as  praise. 
If  my  conversation  with  you  often  takes  a  serious  turn,  you 
must  impute  it  to  the  fact  that  I  am  your  mother,  and  have 
not  relinquished  that  rdle  •  to  my  discovery  of  some  wise 
thoughts  in  my  own  head,  and  wanting  to  put  them  into 
yours ;  and  to  my  desire  to  make  good  use  of  the  quickly 
passing  time  that  will  soon  bear  you  far  from  me.  When  I 
need  no  longer  advise  and  warn  you,  we  shall  talk  together 
quite  at  our  ease,  interchanging  our  reflections,  our  remarks, 
and  our  opinions  on  everything  and  everybody  quite  frankly, 
without  fear  of  vexing  one  another ;  in  fact,  with  all  that 
sincere  and  intimate  friendship  which,  I  believe,  may  per- 
fectly well  exist  between  a  mother  and  a  son.  There  are 
not  so  many  years  between  us  as  to  prevent  me  from  sym- 
pathizing with  your  youth,  or  sharing  some  of  your  feelings. 
Women's  shoulders  wear  young  heads  for  a  long  time,  and 
in  the  head  of  a  mother  one  side  is  always  just  the  same  age 
as  her  child's. 

"  Madame  de  Grasse  told  me  also  that  you  want  to  amuse 
yourself  during  these  holidays  by  writing  some  of  your  no- 
tions on  various  subjects.  I  think  you  are  right.  It  will  be 
interesting  for  you  to  read  them  again  in  a  few  years.  Your 
father  would  say  I  want  to  make  you  a  scribbler  like  myself 
— for  he  does  not  stand  on  ceremony  with  me — but  I  do  not 
care.  There  can  be  no  harm  in  setting  down  one's  thoughts 
in  writing  for  one's  self  alone,  and  I  think  both  taste  and 
style  may  be  formed  in  this  way.  It  is  just  because  your 
father  is  lazy,  and  only  writes  one  letter  a  week ;  true,  it  is 

closest  friendship  with  my  father  until  his  death  in  1859,  notwithstanding  the 
wide  dissimilarity  of  their  opinions  and  habits. 


PREFACE. 


XXXlll 


a  very  pleasant  one,  but  still  that  is  not  much.  .  .  .  But 
there  !  I  must  not  run  on  about  him. 

"  During  my  retirement  I  thought  I  should  like  to  draw 
your  portrait,  and  if  I  had  not  had  a  sore  throat,  I  would 
have  tried  to  do  so.  While  I  was  thinking  it  over,  I  found 
that  in  order  not  to  be  insipid,  and,  indeed,  to  be  correct,  I 
should  have  to  point  out  a  few  faults,  and  I  do  believe  the 
hard  words  have  stuck  in  my  throat  and  given  me  quinsy. 
While  planning  this  portrait,  I  assure  you  I  took  you  to 
pieces  very  carefully,  and  I  found  many  good  qualities  well 
developed,  a  few  just  beginning  to  bud,  and  then  some 
slight  congestions  which  hinder  certain  others  from  exhibit- 
ing themselves.  I  beg  your  pardon  for  using  a  medical  ex- 
pression ;  it  is  because  I  am  in  a  place  where  nothing  but 
congestions  and  the  way  to  get  rid  of  them  is  talked  about. 
I  will  explain  all  this  some  day  when  I  am  in  the  vein,  but 
to-day  I  will  touch  only  on  one  point — your  behavior  to 
others.  You  are  polite — more  so,  indeed,  than  is  customary 
at  your  age  :  you  have  a  pleasant  manner  in  addressing 
people,  and  you  are  a  good  listener.  Do  not  let  this  last  quali- 
ty slip.  Madame  de  Sevigne*  says  that  an  appreciative  silence 
is  a  mark  of  superior  sense  in  young  people.  <  But,  mother, 
what  are  you  driving  at  ?  You  promised  to  point  out  a  fault, 
and  hitherto  I  see  nothing  like  one.  A  father's  blow  turns 
aside.  Let  us  come  to  the  fact,  my  dear  mother.'  So  I  will, 
my  son,  in  one  moment ;  you  forget  that  I  have  a  sore  throat, 
and  can  only  speak  slowly.  Well,  then,  you  are  polite.  When 
you  are  asked  to  do  something  which  will  gratify  those  you 
love,  you  consent  willingly  ;  but,  when  an  opportunity  of  so 
doing  is  merely  pointed  out  to  you,  natural  indolence  and  a 
certain  love  of  self  make  you  hesitate  ;  and,  when  left  to 
yourself,  you  do  not  seek  such  opportunities,  for  fear  of  the 
trouble  they  might  entail.  Can  you  understand  these  subtile 
distinctions  ?  While  you  are  still  partly  under  my  authority, 
I  can  influence  and  guide  you :  but  you  will  soon  have  to 
answer  for  yourself,  and  I  should  wish  you  to  think  a  little 


xxxiv  PREFACE. 

about  other  people,  notwithstanding  the  claims  of  your  own 
youth,  which  are  naturally  engrossing.  I  am  not  sure  that 
I  have  expressed  myself  clearly.  As  my  ideas  have  to  find 
their  way  through  a  headache  and  all  my  bandages,  and  for 
the  last  four  days  I  have  not  sharpened  my  wits  by  contact 
with  those  of  Albert,  the  quinsy  may  possibly  have  got  into 
my  discourse. 

"  You  must  make  the  best  of  it.  At  any  rate,  it  is  a  fact 
that  you  have  polished  manners,  in  other  words,  you  are  kind. 
Kindness  is  the  politeness  of  the  heart.  But  enough. 

"  Your  little  brother  makes  a  good  figure  at  the  village 
dances.  He  has  become  quite  a  rustic.  In  the  morning  he 
fishes  and  takes  long  walks  about  the  country.  He  under- 
stands more  about  trees  and  agriculture  than  you  do.  In  the 
evening  he  shines  among  our  big  Auvergne  shepherdesses,  to 
whom  he  shows  off  all  those  little  airs  and  graces  which  you 
know  so  well. 

"  Adieu,  my  dear  son  ;  I  leave  off  because  I  have  come 
to  the  end  of  my  paper.  "Writing  all  this  to  you  relieves  me 
a  little  of  my  ennui,  but  I  must  not  quite  overwhelm  you  by 
pouring  out  too  much  at  a  time.  My  respects  to  Griffon, 
and  best  compliments  to  M.  Leclerc."  * 

In  this  confidential  strain  the  mother  and  the  son  carried 
on  their  correspondence.  One  year  later,  in  1814,  the  son 
left  school,  destined  to  fulfill  all  the  promise  of  his  childhood, 
and  to  hold  thenceforth  a  more  important  place  in  the  life 
and  occupations  of  his  parents.  His  influence  soon  began  to 
tell  on  theirs,  the  more  so  that  there  existed  no  absolute  di- 
vergence in  their  opinions.  But  he  was  more  positive  and 
bolder  than  his  parents,  because  he  was  not  fettered  by  the 
ties  of  old  memories  and  old  affection.  He  felt  no  regret  for 
the  Emperor,  and,  although  deeply  moved  by  the  sufferings 

*  Griffon  was  a  little  dog.  M.  Leclerc  was  a  member  of  the  Institute  and 
Dean  of  the  Faculty  of  Letters.  He  died  a  few  years  ago.  At  that  time  he  was 
a  professor  at  the  LycSe  Napoleon,  and  gave  lessons  to  my  father. 


PREFACE. 

of  the  French  army,  lie  witnessed  the  fall  of  the  Empire,  if 
not  with  joy,  at  least  with  indifference.  To  him,  as  to  most 
talented  young  men  of  his  time,  it  came  as  an  emancipation. 
He  eagerly  embraced  the  first  notions  of  constitutional  order, 
which  made  their  reappearance  with  the  Bourbons.  But  he 
was  struck  by  the  ridiculous  side  of  Royalist  society.  Many 
of  the  revived  fashions  and  phrases  *  seemed  to  him  to  be 
mere  foolery ;  he  was  disgusted  by  the  abuse  lavished  upon 
the  Emperor  and  the  men  of  the  Empire,  but  neither  his 
parents  nor  he,  although  still  a  little  suspicious  of  the  new 
order  of  things,  was  seriously  opposed  to  it.  Neither  the 
personal  vexations  which  resulted  from  it,  such  as  the  depri- 
vation of  employment,  the  necessity  of  selling  to  great  disad- 
vantage a  library  which  was  the  delight  of  my  grandfather, 
and  which  lives  in  the  recollection  of  lovers  of  books,  nor  a 
thousand  other  annoyances,  could  prevent  their  experiencing 
a  sense  of  relief.  They  almost  verified  a  celebrated  saying 
of  the  Emperor,  who,  when  at  the  zenith  of  his  power,  once 
asked  those  surrounding  him  what  would  be  said  after  his 
death.  They  all  hastened  to  answer  in  phrases  of  compli- 
ment or  of  flattery.  But  he  interrupted  them  by  exclaiming, 
"  "What !  you  are  at  a  loss  to  know  what  people  will  say  ? 
They  will  say  <Ouf !'" 

Y. 

It  was  difficult  to  attend  to  personal  interests  in  those 
days ;  one  could  hardly  help  being  diverted  from  them,  and 
engrossed  solely  by  the  spectacle  of  France  and  Europe. 
Curiosity  would  naturally  outweigh  ambition  in  a  family 
such  as  we  are  depicting.  My  grandfather  did  nevertheless 
think  of  entering  the  administration,  and  once  more  revived 
his  project,  hitherto  doomed  to  disappointment,  of  gaining 
admittance  to  the  Council  of  State;  but  he  was  as  supine 
about  it  as  before.  Had  he  entered  the  administration,  he 
would  only  have  been  following  the  example  of  the  majority 
*  For  a  note  by  Count  de  Remusat,  Bee  Appendix. 


xxxvi  PREFACE. 

of  the  former  officials  of  the  Empire,  for  the  Bonapartist  Op- 
position did  not  come  into  existence  until  the  latter  days  of 
the  Monarchy.  The  members  of  the  Imperial  family  lived 
in  constant  and  friendly  intercourse  with  the  new  regime,  or 
rather  the  reinstated  old  regime.  The  Empress  Josephine 
was  treated  with  great  respect,  and  the  Emperor  Alexander 
frequently  visited  her  at  Malmaison.  She  wished  to  take  up 
a  dignified  and  fitting  position,  and  she  confided  to  her  lady- 
in-waiting  that  she  thought  of  asking  the  title  of  High  Con- 
stable for  her  son  Eugene,  showing  thereby  that  she  scarcely 
understood  the  spirit  of  the  Restoration.  Queen  Hortense, 
who  afterward  became  the  bitter  enemy  of  the  Bourbons, 
and  was  concerned  in  numerous  conspiracies,  obtained  the 
Duchy  of  Saint  Leu,  for  which  she  intended  to  return  thanks 
in  person  to  Louis  XYIII.  All  projects  of  this  kind  had, 
however,  to  be  abandoned ;  for  the  Empress  Josephine  was 
suddenly  carried  off  by  malignant  sore  throat  in  March,  1814, 
and  the  last  link  that  bound  my  kinsfolk  to  the  Bonaparte 
family  was  sundered  for  ever. 

The  Bourbons  seemed  to  make  a  point  of  annoying  and 
depressing  those  very  persons  whom  their  Government 
should  have  endeavored  to  conciliate,  and  by  slow  degrees 
a  belief  gained  ground  that  their  reign  would  be  of  short 
duration,  and  that  France,  just  then  more  in  love  with  equal- 
ity than  with  liberty,  would  demand  to  be  placed  once  more 
under  the  yoke  which  had  seemed  to  be  shattered ;  in  fact, 
that  the  days  of  Imperial  splendor  and  misery  would  return. 
It  was,  therefore,  with  less  amazement  than  might  be  sup- 
posed that  my  grandfather  learned  one  day  from  a  friend 
that  the  Emperor  had  escaped  from  Elba  and  landed  at 
Cannes.  Historical  events  seem  more  astounding  to  those 
who  read  of  them  than  to  eye-witnesses.  Those  who  knew 
Bonaparte  could  readily  believe  him  capable  of  again  putting 
France  and  Frenchmen  in  peril  for  the  sake  of  a  selfish 
scheme.  His  return  was,  however,  a  tremendous  event,  and 
every  one  had  to  think  not  only  of  the  political  future,  but 


PREFACE. 


xxx  vii 


also  of  his  own.  Even  those  who,  like  M.  de  Remusat,  had 
not  publicly  taken  any  political  side,  and  who  only  wanted 
to  be  left  in  repose  and  obscurity,  had  everything  to  lose, 
and  were  bound  to  provide  against  eventualities.  The  gen- 
eral suspense  did  not  last  long ;  even  before  the  Emperor's 
entry  into  Paris,  M.  Real  came  to  announce  to  M.  de  Remu- 
sat  that  he  was  sentenced  to  exile  together  with  twelve  or  fif- 
teen others,  among  whom  was  M.  Pasquier. 

An  event  still  more  serious  than  exile,  and  which  left  a 
deeper  trace  in  my  father's  memory,  occurred  between  the 
first  news  of  the  return  of  Napoleon  and  his  arrival  at  the 
Tuileries.  On  the  day  after  that  on  which  the  landing  was 
publicly  announced,  Mme.  de  Nansouty  hurried  to  her  sister's 
house,  full  of  dismay  at  all  that  she  had  been  told  of  the  per- 
secution to  which  the  opponents  of  the  vindictive  and  all- 
powerful  Emperor  were  about  to  be  exposed.  She  told  my 
grandparents  that  a  rigorous  inquisition  by  the  police  was 
to  be  put  in  action ;  that  M.  Pasquier  apprehended  molesta- 
tion, and  that  everything  in  the  house  which  could  give  rise 
to  suspicion  must  be  got  rid  of.  My  grandmother,  who 
might  not  otherwise  have  thought  of  danger,  remembered 
with  alarm  that  a  manuscript  highly  calculated  to  com- 
promise her  husband,  her  sister,  her  brother-in-law,  and  her 
friends,  was  in  the  house.  For  many  years,  probably  from 
her  first  appearance  at  Court,  she  had  been  in  the  habit 
of  taking  notes  daily  of  the  events  and  conversations  which 
came  under  her  notice,  while  her  memory  of  them  was  fresh. 
She  had  recorded  nearly  everything  she  saw  and  heard,  at 
Paris,  at  St.  Cloud,  and  at  Malmaison.  For  twelve  years  she 
had  transferred,  not  only  events  and  circumstances,  but 
studies  of  character  and  disposition,  to  the  pages  of  her  jour- 
nal. This  journal  was  kept  in  the  form  of  a  correspondence. 
It  consisted  of  a  series  of  letters,  written  from  Court  to  a 
friend  from  whom  nothing  was  concealed.  The  author  well 
knew  all  the  value  of  these  fictitious  letters,  which  recalled 
her  whole  life,  with  its  most  precious  and  most  painful 


xxxviii  PREFACE. 

recollections.  Ought  she  to  risk,  for  what  would  appear  to 
others  only  literary  or  sentimental  selfishness,  the  peace,  the 
liberty,  nay,  even  the  life  of  those  she  loved  ?  No  one  was 
aware  of  the  existence  of  this  manuscript,  except  her  hus- 
band and  Mme.  Cheron,  the  wife  of  the  Prefect  of  that 
name,  a  very  old  and  attached  friend.  Her  thoughts  turned 
to  this  lady,  who  had  once  before  taken  charge  of  the  dan- 
gerous manuscript,  and  she  hastened  to  seek  her.  Unfor- 
tunately Mme.  Che'ron  was  from  home,  and  not  likely  to 
return  for  a  considerable  time.  What  was  to  be  done  ?  My 
grandmother  came  back,  greatly  distressed,  and,  without 
further  reflection  or  delay,  threw  her  manuscripts  into  the 
fire.  My  father  came  into  the  room  just  as  she  was  burn- 
ing the  last  sheets,  somewhat  cautiously,  lest  the  flame  should 
reach  too  high.  He  was  then  seventeen,  and  has  often  de- 
scribed the  scene  to  me — the  remembrance  of  it  was  most 
painful  to  him.  He  thought  at  first  .that  his  mother  was 
merely  destroying  a  copy  of  the  memoirs,  which  he  had 
never  read,  and  that  the  precious  original  manuscript  was 
safely  concealed.  He  threw  the  last  sheets  into  the  fire  with 
his  own  hand,  attaching  but  little  importance  to  the  action. 
"  Few  deeds,"  he  used  to  say,  "  after  I  learned  all  the  truth, 
have  I  ever  so  bitterly  regretted." 

From  the  very  first,  the  author  and  her  son  so  deeply 
lamented  what  they  had  done — for  they  learned  almost  im- 
mediately that  the  sacrifice  was  uncalled  for — that  for  years 
they  could  not  speak  of  it  between  themselves  or  to  my 
grandfather.  The  latter  bore  his  exile  with  much  philosophy. 
He  was  not  forbidden  to  dwell  in  France,  but  only  in  Paris 
and  its  neighborhood,  and  it  was  decided  that  they  should  all 
await  the  passing  of  the  storm  in  Languedoc,  where  he  pos- 
sessed an  estate  which  he  had  bought  back  from  the  heirs  of 
M.  de  Bastard,  his  wife's  grandfather,  and  which  had  long 
been  neglected.  The  family  removed,  therefore,  to  Laffitte, 
where  my  father  afterward  passed  so  many  years,  now  in  the 
midst  of  political  agitation,  again  in  quiet  study.  In  after 


PREFACE. 

days  he  again  came  thither  from  exile  ;  for  the  sufferings  of 
good  citizens  from  absolute  power  were  not  to  be  restricted 
to  the  year  1815,  and  Napoleons  have  returned  to  France 
from  a  greater  distance  than  the  Isle  of  Elba. 

My  grandfather  started  for  Laffitte  on  March  13th,  and 
his  family  joined  him  there  a  few  days  afterward.  At  Laf- 
fitte they  passed  the  three  months  of  that  reign,  shorter  but 
still  more  fatal  than  the  first,  which  has  been  called  "  The 
Hundred  Days."  There  my  father  entered  upon  his  literary 
career,  not  as  yet  producing  original  works,  but  translating 
Pope,  Cicero,  and  Tacitus.  His  only  original  writings  were 
his  songs.  The  family  lived  quietly,  unitedly,  and  almost 
happily,  waiting  the  end  of  a  tragedy  of  which  they  foresaw 
the  denoument,  and  at  Laffitte  they  received  the  news  of 
Waterloo.  They  heard  at  the  same  time  of  the  abdication  of 
Napoleon,  and  that  M.  de  Eemusat  was  appointed  Prefect 
of  Haute-Garonne,  by  a  decree  of  July  12,  1815.  This  ap- 
pointment was  quite  to  the  taste  of  my  grandfather,  for  it 
placed  him  once  more  in  office,  without  involving  him  in  the 
parade  of  a  court ;  but  it  was  less  pleasing  to  his  wife,  who 
regretted  Paris  and  her  old  friends  there,  and  who  dreaded 
the  disturbances  at  Toulouse,  at  that  time  a  prey  to  the  vio- 
lence of  southern  Eoyalism — "  the  White  Terror,"  as  it  was 
then  called. 

The  new  Prefect  immediately  set  out  for  Toulouse,  and 
was  greeted  on  his  arrival  with  the  news  that  General  Kamel, 
notwithstanding  that  he  had  hoisted  the  white  flag  on  the 
Capitol,  had  been  assassinated.  Such  are  the  injustice  and 
violence  of  party  spirit,  even  when  victorious;  nay,  espe- 
cially when  victorious ! 

But,  however  interesting  this  episode  of  our  national 
troubles  may  be,  it  is  not  necessary  to  dwell  on  them  here. 
The  principal  personage  in  these  Memoirs  is  not  the  Prefect, 
but  Mme.  de  Remusat.  My  grandmother,  anxious  about 
the  course  of  events,  and  perhaps  afraid  of  the  vehemence 
of  her  son's  opinions,  which  were  little  suited  to  his  father's 


xl  PREFACE. 

official  position,  sent  him  back  to  Paris,  to  his  great  satis- 
faction. 

Then  ensued  a  correspondence  between  them  which  will 
make  both  of  them  known  to  us,  and  will  perhaps  depict  the 
writer  of  these  Memoirs  more  clearly  than  do  the  Memoirs 
themselves. 

As,  however,  the  latter  work  only  is  in  question  at  pres- 
ent, it  is  not  necessary  to  give  in  detail  the  history  of  the 
period  subsequent  to  1815.  The  administration  of  the  de- 
partment, which  commenced  under  such  gloomy  auspices, 
was,  for  a  period  of  nineteen  months,  extremely  difficult. 
While  the  son,  mixing  in  very  Liberal  society  in  Paris, 
adopted  the  opinions  of  advanced  constitutional  Royalism, 
which  did  little  more  than  tolerate  the  Bourbons,  the  father, 
amid  totally  different  surroundings,  underwent  a  similar  men- 
tal process,  and  placed  himself  by  word  and  deed  in  the  front 
rank  of  those  officials  of  the  King's  Government  who  were 
the  least  Eoyalist  and  the  most  Liberal.  He  was  a  just  and 
moderate  man,  a  lover  of  law,  neither  an  aristocrat  nor  a 
bigot.  The  people  of  Toulouse  were  all  that  he  was  not ; 
nevertheless  he  was  successful  there,  and  left  behind  him  a 
kindly  memory,  which  lapsed  as  the  men  of  his  time  disap- 
peared, but  of  which  my  father  has  more  than  once  found 
traces.  These  early  days  of  constitutional  liberty,  even  in  a 
province  which  did  not  afterward  put  its  theories  boldly  in 
practice,  are  curious  to  contemplate. 

The  light  of  that  liberty  illumined  all  that  the  Empire 
had  left  in  darkness.  Opinions,  ideas,  hatred,  passions,  came 
to  life.  The  Government  of  the  Bourbons  was  represented 
by  a  married  priest,  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  a  regicide  Jaco- 
bin, M.  Fouche ;  but  even  they  could  not  oppose  the  reac- 
tionary tendency  of  the  time,  and  the  Liberal  policy  did  not 
triumph  until  the  accession  of  MM.  Decazes,  Pasquier,  Mole, 
and  Koyer-Collard  to  the  ministry,  and  the  passing  of  the 
famous  decree  of  the  5th  of  September.  The  new  policy 
was  of  course  advantageous  to  those  who  had  practiced  it  be- 


PREFACE.  xli 

forehand,  and  there  could  be  no  ill  will  toward  the  Prefect 
on  account  of  the  failure  of  the  Liberal  party  in  the  elec- 
tions of  Haute-Garonne.  So  soon  as  the  ministry  was  firm- 
ly established,  and  as  M.  Laine  had  succeeded  M.  de  Yau- 
blanc,  my  grandfather  was  appointed  Prefect  of  Lille.  My 
father  records  in  a  letter  already  quoted  the  effect  of  these 
events  on  the  mind  of  Mme.  de  Remusat : 

"  The  nomination  of  my  father  to  Lille  brought  my  mo- 
ther back  into  the  midst  of  the  great  stir  of  public  opinion, 
which  was  soon  to  declare  itself  as  it  had  not  done  since  1789. 
Her  intelligence,  her  reason,  all  her  feelings  and  all  her  con- 
victions, were  about  to  make  a  great  step  in  advance.  The 
Empire,  after  awakening  her  interest  in  public  affairs  and 
enabling  her  to  understand  them,  subsequently  directed  her 
mind  toward  a  high  moral  aim,  by  inspiring  her  with  a  hor- 
ror of  tyranny.  Hence  came  her  desire  for  a  government 
of  order,  founded  on  law,  reason,  and  the  spirit  of  the  na- 
tion ;  hence  a  certain  leaning  toward  the  forms  of  the  Eng- 
lish constitution.  Her  stay  at  Toulouse  and  the  reaction  of 
1815  gave  her  such  a  knowledge  of  social  realities  as  nhe 
could  never  have  acquired  in  the  salwis  of  Paris,  enlighten- 
ing her  as  to  the  results  and  the  causes  of  the  Revolution, 
and  the  needs  and  sentiments  of  the  nation.  She  under- 
stood, in  a  general  way,  on  which  side  lay  true  help,  strength, 
life,  and  right.  She  learned  that  a  new  France  had  been 
called  into  existence,  and  what  it  was,  and  that  it  was  for 
and  by  this  new  France  that  government  must  be  carried 


YI. 

My  grandmother's  stay  at  Lille  was  occasionally  varied 
by  visits  to  her  son  in  Paris.  The  pleasures  of  society  were 
but  a  prelude  to  the  literary  success  that  he  achieved  a  few 
months  later  ;  and  indeed  he  was  already  practicing  compo- 
sition in  his  frequent  letters  to  his  mother  on  politics  and 
literature.  Mme.  de  Remusat  had  more  leisure  at  Lille  than 


xlii  PREFACE. 

in  Paris,  and,  although  her  health  was  still  delicate,  she  in- 
dulged her  taste  for  intellectual  pursuits.  Hitherto  she  had 
written  nothing  but  the  Memoirs  that  she  had  afterward  de- 
stroyed, and  a  few  short  tales  and  essays.  In  the  leisure  of 
a  country  life  she  now  attempted  a  romance  in  the  form 
of  letters,  called  "  Les  Lettres  Espagnols,  ou  PAmbitieux." 
While  she  was  working  at  this  with  ardor  and  success,  the 
posthumous  work  of  Mme.  de  Stael,  "  Considerations  sur  la 
Revolution  Franchise,"  came  out  in  1818,  and  made  a  great 
impression  on  her.  !N"ow  that  sixty  years  have  elapsed,  it  is 
difficult  for  us  to  realize  the  extraordinary  effect  of  Mme.  de 
Stael's  eloquent  dissertation  on  the  principles  of  the  Revolu- 
tion. The  opinions  of  the  author,  then  quite  novel,  are  now 
merely  noble  truisms  obvious  to  all.  But  in  the  days  that 
immediately  followed  the  Empire  they  were  something  more. 
Everything  was  then  new,  and  the  younger  generation,  wno 
had  undergone  twenty  years  of  tyranny,  had  to  learn  over 
again  that  which  their  fathers  had  known  so  well  in  1T89. 

My  grandmother  was  especially  struck  by  the  eloquent 
pages  in  which  the  author  gives  somewhat  declamatory  ex- 
pression to  her  hatred  of  Napoleon.  Mme.  de  Remusat  felt 
a  certain  sympathy  with  the  author's  sentiments,  but  she 
could  not  forget  that  at  one  time  she  had  thought  differently. 
People  who  are  fond  of  writing  are  easily  tempted  into  ex- 
plaining their  conduct  and  feelings  on  paper.  She  conceived 
a  strong  desire  to  arrange  all  her  reminiscences,  to  describe 
the  Empire  as  she  had  seen  it,  and  how  she  had  at  first  loved 
and  admired,  next  condemned  and  dreaded,  afterward  sus- 
pected and  hated,  and  finally  renounced  it.  The  Memoirs 
she  had  destroyed  in  1815  would  have  been  the  most  accu- 
rate exposition  of  this  succession  of  events,  situations,  and 
feelings.  It  was  vain  to  think  of  rewriting  them,  but  it 
was  possible,  with  the  help  of  a  good  memory  and  an  up- 
right intention,  to  compose  others  which  should  be  equally 
sincere.  Full  of  this  project,  she  wrote  to  her  son  (May  27, 
1818) : 


PREFACE. 

"  I  have  taken  up  a  new  notion.  You  must  know  that  I 
wake  every  morning  at  six  o'clock,  and  that  I  write  regularly 
from  that  hour  until  half -past  nine.  Well,  I  was  sitting  up 
with  the  manuscript  of  my  c  Lettres  Espagnols '  all  scattered 
about  me,  when  certain  chapters  of  Mme.  de  StaeTs  book 
came  into  my  head.  I  flung  my  romance  aside,  and  took  up 
a  clean  sheet  of  paper,  bitten  with  the  idea  that  I  must  write 
about  Bonaparte.  On  I  went,  describing  the  death  of  the 
Duke  d'Enghien  and  that  dreadful  week  I  spent  at  Malmai- 
son ;  and,  as  I  am  an  emotional  person,  I  seemed  to  be  living 
all  through  that  time  over  again.  Words  and  events  came 
back  of  themselves;  between  yesterday  and  to-day  I  have 
written  twenty  pages,  and  am  somewhat  agitated  in  conse- 
quence." 

The  same  circumstance  which  reawakened  the  recollec- 
tions of  the  mother  aroused  the  literary  tastes  of  the  son ; 
and  while  he  was  publishing  an  article  on  Mme.  de  Stae'l  in 
the  "  Archives,"  *  his  first  appearance  in  print,  he  wrote  as 
follows  to  his  mother  on  the  same  date,  May  27, 1818.  Their 
respective  letters  crossed  on  the  road : 

" c  All  honor  to  the  sincere ! '  This  book,  my  dear  mother, 
has  renewed  my  regret  that  you  have  burned  your  Memoirs, 
and  has  made  me  most  anxious  that  you  should  retrieve  that 
loss.  You  really  owe  this  to  yourself,  to  us,  to  the  interests 
of  truth.  Eead  up  the  old  almanacs ;  study  the  '  Moniteur ' 
page  by  page ;  get  back  your  old  letters  from  your  friends, 
and  go  over  them,  especially  those  to  my  father.  Try  to 
remember  not  only  the  details  of  events,  but  your  own  im- 
pressions of  them.  Try  to  resuscitate  the  views  you  formerly 
held,  even  the  illusions  you  have  lost ;  recall  your  very  er- 
rors. Show  how  you,  with  many  other  honorable  and  sensi- 
ble people,  indignant  and  disgusted  with  the  horrors  of  the 

*  "Archives  Philosophiques,  Politiques  et  Litte>aires,"  rol.  v.,  Paris,  1818. 
My  father  reprinted  this  article  in  the  collection  entitled  "  Critiques  et  Etudes 
Litteraires,  ou  Passe"  et  Present,"  par  Ch.  de  Rerausat.  2  vols.,  12rno.  Paris, 
1857. 


xliv  PREFACE. 

Eevolution,  were  carried  away  by  natural  aversions,  and  be- 
guiled by  enthusiasm  for  one  man,  which  was  in  reality  high- 
ly patriotic.  Explain  how  we  had  all  of  us  become,  as  it 
were,  strangers  to  political  life.  We  had  no  dread  of  the 
empire  of  an  individual;  we  went  out  to  meet  it.  Then 
show  how  this  man  either  became  corrupt,  or  else  displayed 
his  true  character  as  his  power  increased.  Tell  how  it  un- 
fortunately happened  that,  as  you  lost  one  by  one  your  illu- 
sions concerning  him,  you  became  more  and  more  dependent, 
and  how  the  less  you  submitted  to  him  in  heart,  the  more 
you  were  obliged  to  obey  him  in  fact ;  how  at  last,  after  hav- 
ing believed  in  the  uprightness  of  his  policy  because  you 
were  mistaken  in  himself,  your  discovery  of  his  true  charac- 
ter led  you  to  a  correct  view  of  his  system ;  and  how  moral 
indignation  finally  brought  you  by  degrees  to  what  I  may 
call  a  political  hatred  of  him.  This,  my  dear  mother,  is 
what  I  entreat  of  you  to  do.  You  see  what  I  mean,  do  you 
not  ?  and  you  will  do  it." 

Two  days  after,  on  the  30th  of  May,  my  grandmother  re- 
plied as  follows : 

"  Is  it  not  wonderful  how  perfectly  we  understand  each 
other  ?  I  am  reading  the  book,  and  I  am  as  much  struck  by 
it  as  you  are.  I  regret  my  poor  Memoirs  for  new  reasons, 
and  I  take  up  my  pen  again  without  quite  knowing  whither 
it  will  lead  me ;  for,  my  dear  child,  this  task  which  you  have 
set  me,  and  which  of  itself  is  tempting,  is  also  formidable. 
I  shall,  however,  set  about  reviving  my  impressions  of  cer- 
tain epochs,  at  first  without  order  or  sequence,  just  as  things 
come  back  to  me.  You  may  trust  me  to  set  down  the  very 
truth.  Yesterday,  when  I  was  alone  and  at  my  desk,  I  was 
trying  to  recall  my  first  meeting  with  this  wretched  man. 
A  tide  of  remembrance  rushed  over  me,  and  that  which  you 
so  justly  call  my  political  hatred  was  ready  to  fade  away  and 
give  place  to  my  former  illusions." 

A  few  days  later,  on  the  8th  of  June,  1818,  she  dwells 
on  the  difficulties  of  her  task : 


PREFACE. 

"  Do  you  know  that  I  need  all  my  courage  to  do  as  you 
tell  me  ?  I  am  like  a  person  who,  having  spent  ten  years  at 
the  galleys,  is  asked  to  write  an  account  of  how  he  passed  his 
time.  My  heart  sinks  when  I  recall  old  memories.  There  is 
pain  both  in  my  past  fancies  and  in  my  present  feelings.  You 
are  right  in  saying  I  love  truth  ;  but  it  follows  that  I  can  not, 
like  so  many  others,  recall  the  past  with  impunity,  and  I  assure 
you  that,  for  the  last  week,  I  have  risen  quite  saddened  from 
the  desk  at  which  you  and  Mme.  de  Stael  have  placed  me.  I 
could  not  reveal  these  feelings  to  any  one  but  you.  Others 
would  not  understand,  and  would  only  laugh  at  me." 

On  the  28th  of  September  and  the  8th  of  October  of  the 
same  year,  she  writes  to  her  son : 

"  If  I  were  a  man,  I  should  certainly  devote  a  part  of 
my  life  to  studying  the  League;  being  only  a  woman,  I 
confine  myself  to  verbal  utterances  about  you  know  whom. 
What  a  man  !  what  a  man !  It  terrifies  me  to  retrace  it 
all.  It  was  my  misfortune  to  be  very  young  when  I  was 
placed  near  him;  I  did  not  reflect  on  what  passed  before 
me ;  but  now  that  wre  are  both  older,  I  and  the  generation 
to  which  I  belong,  my  memories  move  me  more  than  did 
events  at  that  time.  If  you  come  ...  I  think  you  will 
find  that  I  have  not  lost  much  time  this  summer.  I  have 
already  written  nearly  five  hundred  pages,  and  I  am  going 
to  write  much  more ;  the  task  lengthens  as  I  work  at  it. 
Afterward  much  time  and  patience  will  be  required  to  put 
all  this  material  in  order.  Perhaps  I  shall  never  have  either 
one  or  the  other ;  if  so,  that  will  be  your  business  when  I 
shall  be  no  longer  here." 

"  Your  father,"  she  writes  again,  "  says  that  he  does  not 
know  of  any  one  to  whom  I  could  show  what  I  am  writing. 
He  declares  that  no  one  excels  me  in  '  the  talent  for  being 
true '  as  he  expresses  it.  So,  therefore,  I  write  for  nobody 
in  particular.  Some  day  you  will  find  my  manuscripts  among 
my  effects,  and  you  can  do  what  you  like  with  them." 

On  the  8th  of  October,  1818,  she  writes :  « There  is  a 


xlvi  PREFACE. 

thought  that  sometimes  troubles  me.  I  say  to  myself,  <  Sup- 
pose some  day  my  son  publishes  this,  what  will  be  said  of 
me  ? '  Then  the  fear  seizes  me  that  I  shall  be  held  to  have 
been  malicious,  or  at  least  ill-natured,  and  I  rack  my  brain 
for  something  to  praise.  But  this  man  (Bonaparte)  was  such 
a  ruthless  destroyer  of  all  worth  and  we  were  brought  so 
low  that  I  am  straitened  by  the  demands  of  truth,  and  I 
grow  quite  disheartened." 

These  fragments  of  her  letters  indicate  the  spirit  in  which 
the  Memoirs  of  Mme.  de  Remusat  were  written ;  and  it  was 
not  that  of  a  literary  pastime,  nor  a  pleasure  of  the  imagina- 
tion. Her  motive  was  neither  ambition  to  be  an  author,  nor 
the  desire  to  put  forward  an  apology.  The  love  of  truth, 
the  political  spectacle  before  her  eyes,  and  the  influence  of  a 
son  who  became  day  by  day  more  strongly  confirmed  in  those 
Liberal  opinions  which  were  destined  to  be  the  delight  and 
the  honor  of  his  life — these  things  gave  her  courage  to  per- 
severe in  her  task  for  more  than  two  years.  She  understood 
that  noble  policy  which  places  the  rights  of  man  above  the 
rights  of  the  State.  Nor  was  this  all.  As  often  happens  to 
persons  deeply  engaged  in  intellectual  work,  her  task  became 
plain  and  easy,  and  she  led  a  more  active  life  than  at  any 
previous  time.  In  spite  of  failing  health,  she  constantly 
traveled  from  Lille  to  Paris ;  she  acted  the  part  of  Elmire  in 
"  Tartuffe  "  at  M.  Mole's  house  at  Champldtreux ;  she  com- 
menced a  work  on  the  Women  of  the  Seventeenth  Century, 
which  she  afterward  expanded  into  her  "  Essai  sur  1'Educa- 
tion  des  Femmes " ;  she  supplied  Dupuytren  with  material 
for  a  panegyric  on  Corvisart,  and  she  even  published  a  tale 
in  the  "  Lycee  Fran^ais."  * 

In  the  midst  of  the  happiness  which  she  derived  from 
her  quiet  life  and  her  busy  mind,  from  her  husband's  official 
and  her  son's  literary  success,  her  health  failed.  First  came 
a  weakness  of  the  eyes,  which,  without  actually  threatening 

*  "  Lyc6e  Frai^ais,  on  Melange  de  Litte'rature  ct  de  Critique,"  t.  iii.,  p.  281 
(1820).   ' 


PREFACE.  Xlvii 

her  sight,  occasioned  her  both  pain  and  inconvenience  ;  then 
followed  a  general  delicacy  of  the  system,  in  which  the 
stomach  was  chiefly  affected.  After  alternate  changes  for 
the  better  and  the  worse,  her  son  brought  her  to  Paris  on 
the  28th  of  November,  1821,  in  a  suffering  condition,  which 
was  alarming  to  those  who  loved  her,  but  did  not  appear  to 
the  doctors  to  indicate  immediate  danger.  Broussais,  how- 
ever, took  a  desponding  view  of  her  case,  and  my  father  was 
then  first  struck  by  the  power  of  induction  to  which  the 
discoveries  and  the  errors  of  that  eminent  man  are  alike  due. 
Notwithstanding  her  illness,  she  occupied  herself  on  her  re- 
turn to  Lille  with  literary  and  historical  work,  and  received 
company,  including  a  great  number  of  political  personages. 
She  was  still  able  to  feel  interested  in  the  fall  of  the  Duke 
Decazes,  and  she  foresaw  that  the  coming  into  power  of  M. 
de  Villele — that  is  to  say,  of  the  ultras  or  reactionaries,  as 
they  are  now  called — would  render  it  impossible  for  her 
husband  to  retain  the  Prefecture  of  Lille ;  and,  in  fact,  he 
was  superseded  on  the  9th  of  January,  1822.  Before  this 
occurred,  Mme.  de  Kemusat  was  no  more.  She  expired  sud- 
denly in  the  night,  December  16, 1821,  aged  forty-one  years. 
She  bequeathed  to  her  son  a  lifelong  sorrow,  and  to  her 
friends  the  memory  of  a  remarkable  and  charming  woman. 
Not  one  of  those  friends  is  now  living;  M.  Pasquier,  M. 
Mole,  M.  Guizot,  and  M.  Leclerc  have  recently  passed  away. 
I  render  her  memory  the  truest  homage  in  my  power  by  the 
publication  of  these  unfinished  Memoirs,  which,  with  the 
exception  of  a  few  chapters,  she  was  unable  to  read  over  or 
correct.  The  work  was  to  have  been  divided  into  five  parts, 
corresponding  with  five  distinct  epochs.  She  completed  only 
three,  which-  treat  of  the  interval  between  1802  and  1808 ; 
that  is  to  say,  from  her  first  appearance  at  Court  to  the 
breaking  out  of  the  war  in  Spain.  The  unwritten  portions 
would  have  described  the  period  that  elapsed  between  that 
war  and  the  divorce  (1808-1809),  and  the  five  following 
years,  ending  with  the  fall  of  the  Emperor.  I  am  well 


xlviii  PREFACE. 

aware  that  a  work  of  the  nature  of  this  one  is  calculated  to 
bring  down  upon  both  its  author  and  its  editor  much  blame, 
many  insinuations,  and  a  great  deal  of  political  animosity. 
Its  apparent  contradictions  will  be  held  up  to  observation, 
rather  than  the  interesting  analogy  of  the  opinions  of  three 
generations  which  it  sets  forth,  and  the  difference  in  the 
times.  It  will  be  a  theme  for  wonder  that  any  man  could 
be  a  chamberlain  and  any  woman  a  lady-in-waiting,  and  yet 
that  both  could  be  so  far  from  servile,  so  liberal,  so  little 
shocked  by  the  18th  Brumaire,  so  patriotic,  so  much  fasci- 
nated by  that  man  of  genius,  Bonaparte,  and  so  severe  upon 
his  faults,  so  clear-sighted  respecting  the  majority  of  the 
members  of  the  Imperial  family,  so  indulgent  or  so  blind 
with  regard  to  others  who  have  left  an  equally  fatal  impress 
on  our  national  history.  It  will,  however,  be  difficult  to 
avoid  doing  justice  to  the  sincerity,  the  honesty,  and  the 
intelligence  of  the  author,  or  to  read  the  book  without  de- 
riving from  it  an  increased  aversion  to  absolute  power,  a 
keener  perception  of  its  sophistry,  and  the  hollowness  of  the 
apparent  prosperity  with  which  it  dazzles  public  opinion. 
These  impressions  I  have  especially  derived  from  it,  and  I 
desire  to  retain  them.  It  would  have  been  sufficient  preface 
to  this  book  had  I  written  only  those  words  which  my  father 
uttered,  sixty  years  ago,  when,  on  reading  Mme.  de  Stael, 
he  asked  his  mother  to  tell  him  the  story  of  the  cruel  years 
of  the  First  Empire :  "  All  honor  to  the  sincere ! " 

PAUL  DE  EfiMUSAT. 


MEMOIES  OF 

MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 


INTEODUCTIOK 

PORTRAITS     AND     ANECDOTES. 

Now  that  I  am  about  to  commence  these  Memoirs,  I 
think  it  well  to  precede  them  by  some  observations  on  the 
character  of  the  Emperor,  and  the  various  members  of  his 
family  respectively.  These  observations  will  help  me  in  the 
difficult  task  I  am  about  to  undertake,  by  aiding  me  to  recall 
the  impressions  of  the  last  twelve  years.  I  shall  begin  with 
Bonaparte  himself.  I  am  far  from  saying  that  he  always 
appeared  to  me  in  the  light  in  which  I  see  him  now ;  my 
opinions  have  progressed,  even  as  he  did ;  but  I  am  so  far 
from  being  influenced  by  personal  feelings,  that  I  do  not 
think  it  is  possible  for  me  to  deviate  from  the  exact  truth. 

Napoleon  Bonaparte  is  of  low  stature,  and  rather  ill- 
proportioned  ;  his  bust  is  too  long,  and  so  shortens  the  rest 
of  his  figure.  He  has  thin  chestnut  hair,  his  eyes  are  grayish 
blue,  and  his  skin,  which  was  yellow  while  he  was  slight, 
became  in  later  years  a  dead  white  without  any  color.  His 
forehead,  the  setting  of  his  eye,  the  line  of  his  nose — all  that 
is  beautiful,  and  reminds  one  of  an  antique  medallion.  His 
mouth,  which  is  thin-lipped,  becomes  agreeable  when  he 
laughs ;  the  teeth  are  regular.  His  chin  is  short,  and  his 


2       MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

jaw  heavy  and  square.  He  has  well-formed  hands  and  feet ; 
I  mention  them  particularly,  because  he  thought  a  good  deal 
of  them. 

He  has  an  habitual  slight  stoop.  His  eyes  are  dull,  giv- 
ing to  his  face  when  in  repose  a  melancholy  and  meditative 
expression.  When  he  is  excited  with  anger  his  looks  are 
fierce  and  menacing.  Laughter  becomes  him ;  it  makes  him 
look  more  youthful  and  less  formidable.  It  is  difficult  not 
to  like  him  when  he  laughs,  his  countenance  improves  so 
much.  He  was  always  simple  in  his  dress,  and  generally 
wore  the  uniform  of  his  own  guard.  He  was  cleanly  rather 
from  habit  than  from  a  liking  for  cleanliness;  he  bathed 
often,  sometimes  in  the  middle  of  the  night,  because  he 
thought  the  practice  good  for  his  health.  But,  apart  from 
this,  the  precipitation  with  he  did  everything  did  not  admit 
of  his  clothes  being  put  on  carefully ;  and  on  gala  days  and 
full-dress  occasions  his  servants  were  obliged  to  consult  to- 
gether as  to  when  they  might  snatch  a  moment  to  dress  him. 

He  could  not  endure  the  wearing  of  ornaments ;  the 
slightest  constraint  was  insupportable  to  him.  He  would 
tear  off  or  break  anything  that  gave  him  the  least  annoy- 
ance ;  and  sometimes  the  poor  valet  who  had  occasioned  him 
a  passing  inconvenience  would  receive  violent  proof  of  his 
anger.  I  have  said  there  was  a  sort  of  fascination  in  the 
smile  of  Bonaparte ;  but,  during  all  the  time  I  was  in  the 
habit  of  seeing  him,  he  rarely  put  forth  that  charm.  Gravity 
was  the  foundation  of  his  character ;  not  the  gravity  of  a 
dignified  and  noble  manner,  but  that  which  arises  from  pro- 
found thought.  In  his  youth  he  was  a  dreamer ;  later  in  life 
he  became  a  moody,  and  later  still  an  habitually  ill-tempered 
man.  When  I  first  began  to  know  him  well,  he  was  exceed- 
ingly fond  of  all  that  induces  reverie— Ossian,  the  twilight, 
melancholy  music.  I  have  seen  him  enraptured  by  the  mur- 
mur of  the  wind,  I  have  heard  him  talk  with  enthusiasm  of 
the  moaning  of  the  sea,  and  he  was  tempted  sometimes  to 
believe  that  nocturnal  apparitions  were  not  beyond  the  bounds 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  3 

of  possibility ;  in  fact,  he  had  a  leaning  to  certain  supersti- 
tions. When,  on  leaving  his  study  in  the  evening,  he  went 
into  Mme.  Bonaparte's  drawing-room,  he  would  sometimes 
have  the  candles  shaded  with  white  gauze,  desire  us  to  keep 
profound  silence,  and  amuse  himself  by  telling  or  hearing 
ghost  stories  ;  or  he  would  listen  to  soft,  sweet  music  exe- 
cuted by  Italian  singers,  accompanied  only  by  a  few  instru- 
ments lightly  touched.  Then  he  would  fall  into  a  reverie 
which  all  respected,  no  one  venturing  to  move  or  stir  from 
his  or  her  place.  When  he  aroused  himself  from  that  state, 
which  seemed  to  procure  him  a  sort  of  repose,  he  was  gen- 
erally more  serene  and  more  communicative.  Pie  liked  then 
to  talk  about  the  sensations  he  had  experienced.  He  would 
explain  the  effect  music  had  upon  him  ;  he  always  preferred 
that  of  Paisiello,  because  he  said  it  was  monotonous,  and 
that  impressions  which  repeat  themselves  are  the  only  ones 
that  take  possession  of  us.  The  geometrical  turn  of  his  mind 
disposed  him  to  analyze  even  his  emotions.  No  man  has 
ever  meditated  more  deeply  than  Bonaparte  on  the  "  where- 
fore "  that  rules  human  actions.  Always  aiming  at  some- 
thing, even  in  the  least  important  acts  of  his  life,  always  lay- 
ing bare  to  himself  a  secret  motive  for  each  of  them,  he 
could  never  understand  that  natural  nonchalance  which  leads 
some  persons  to  act  without  a  project  and  without  an  aim. 
He  always  judged  others  by  himself,  and  was  often  mistaken, 
his  conclusions  and  the  actions  which  ensued  upon  them  both 
proving  erroneous. 

Bonaparte  was  deficient  in  education  and  in  manners ;  it 
seemed  as  if  he  must  have  been  destined  either  to  live  in  a 
tent  where  all  men  are  equal,  or  upon  a  throne  where  every- 
thing is  permitted.  He  did  not  know  how  either  to  enter  or 
to  leave  a  room  ;  he  did  not  know  how  to  make  a  bow,  how 
to  rise,  or  how  to  sit  down.  His  questions  were  abrupt,  and 
so  also  was  his  manner  of  speech.  Spoken  by  him,  Italian 
loses  all  its  grace  and  sweetness.  Whatever  language  he 
speaks,  it  seems  always  to  be  a  foreign  tongue  to  him ;  he 


4:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  JR^MUSAT. 

appears  to  force  it  to  express  his  thoughts.  And  then,  as 
any  rigid  rule  becomes  an  insupportable  annoyance  to  him, 
every  liberty  which  he  takes  pleases  him  as  though  it  were  a 
victory,  and  he  would  never  yield  even  to  grammar.  He 
used  to  say  that  in  his  youth  he  had  liked  reading  romances 
as  well  as  studying  the  exact  sciences ;  and  probably  he  was 
influenced  by  so  incongruous  a  mixture.  Unfortunately,  he 
had  met  with  the  worst  kind  of  romances,  and  retained  so 
keen  a  remembrance  of  the  pleasure  they  had  given  him  that, 
when  he  married  the  Archduchess  Marie  Louise,  he  gave  her 
"Hippolyte,  Comte  de  Douglas,"  and  "LesContemporains,"* 
so  that,  as  he  said,  she  might  form  an  idea  of  refined  feeling, 
and  also  of  the  customs  of  society. 

In  trying  to  depict  Bonaparte,  it  would  be  necessary,  fol- 
lowing the  analytical  forms  of  which  he  was  so  fond,  to  sepa- 
rate into  three  very  distinct  parts  his  soul,  his  heart,  and  his 
mind ;  for  no  one  of  these  ever  blended  completely  with  the 
others.  Although  very  remarkable  for  certain  intellectual 
qualities,  no  man,  it  must  be  allowed,  was  ever  less  lofty  of 
soul.  There  was  no  generosity,  no  true  greatness  in  him. 
J  haye  never  known  him  to  admire,  I  have  never  known  him 
to  comprehend,  a  fine  action.  He  always  regarded  every  in- 
dication of  a  good  feeling  with  suspicion ;  he  did  not  value 
sincerity  ;  and  he  did  npt  hesitate  to  say  that  he  recognized 
the  superiority,  of  a  man  by  the  greater  or  less  degree  of 
cleverness  with  which  he  used  the  art  of  lying.  On  the  oc- 
casion of  his  saying  this,  he  added,  with  great  complacency, 
that  when  he  was  a  child  one  of  his  uncles  had  predicted 
that  he  should  govern  the  world,  because  he  was  an  habitual 
liar.  "  M.  de  Metternich,"  he  added,  "  approaches  to  being 
a  statesman— he  lies  very  well." 

All  Bonaparte's  methods  of  government  were  selected 
from  among  those  which  have  a  tendency  to  debase  men. 
He  dreaded  the  ties  of  affection ;  he  endeavored  to  isolate 

*  "  Les  Contemporains  "  was  a  romance,  or  rather  a  series  of  stories  or  por- 
£raits,  by  Retif  de  la  Bretonne. 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  5 

every  one ;  he  never  sold  a  favor  without  awakening  a  sense 
of  uneasiness,  for  he  held  that  the  true  way  to  attach  the 
recipients  to  himself  was  by  compromising  them,  and  often 
even  by  blasting  them  in  public  opinion.  He  could  not 
pardon  virtue  until  he  had  succeeded  in  weakening  its  effect 
by  ridicule.  He  can  not  be  said  to  have  truly  loved  glory, 
for  he  never  hesitated  to  prefer  success  to  it ;  thus,  although 
he  was  audacious  in  good  fortune,  and  although  he  pushed 
it  to  its  utmost  limits,  he  was  tirnid  and  troubled  when 
threatened  with  reverses.  Of  generous  courage  he  was  not 
capable ;  and,  indeed,  on  that  head  one  would  hardly  ven- 
ture to  tell  the  truth  so  plainly  as  he  has  told  it  himself,  by 
an  admission  recorded  in  an  anecdote  which  I  have  never 
forgotten.  One  day,  after  his  defeat  at  Leipsic,  and  when, 
as  he  was  about  to  return  to  Paris,  he  was  occupied  in  col- 
lecting the  remains  of  his  army  for  the  defense  of  our  fron- 
tiers, he  was  talking  to  M.  de  Talleyrand  of  the  ill  success 
of  the  Spanish  war,  and  of  the  difficulty  in  which  it  had  in- 
volved him.  He  spoke  openly  of  his  own  position,  not  with 
the  noble  frankness  that  does  not  fear  to  own  a  fault,  but 
with  that  haughty  sense  of  superiority  which  releases  one 
from  the  necessity  of  dissimulation.  At  this  interview,  in 
the  midst  of  his  plain  speaking,  M.  de  Talleyrand  said  to 
him  suddenly,  "  But  how  is  it  ?  You  consult  me  as  if  we 
had  not  quarreled." 

Bonaparte  answered,  "  Ah,  circumstances !  circumstances! 
Let  us  leave  the  past  and  the  future  alone.  I  want  to  hear 
what  you  think  of  the  present  moment." 

"Well,"  replied  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "there  is  only  one 
thing  you  can  do.  You  have  made  a  mistake :  you  must  say 
so ;  try  to  say  so  nobly.  Proclaim,  therefore,  that  being  a 
King  by  the  choice  of  the  people,  elected  by  the  nations,  it 
has  never  been  your  design  to  set  yourself  against  them. 
Say  that,  when  you  began  the  war  with  Spain,  you  believed 
you  were  about  to  deliver  the  people  from  the  yoke  of  an 
odious  minister,  who  was  encouraged  by  the  weakness  of  his 


6       MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

prince ;  but  that,  on  closer  observation,  you  perceive  that  the 
Spaniards,  although  aware  of  the  faults  of  their  King,  are 
none  the  less  attached  to  his  dynasty,  which  you  are  there- 
fore about  to  restore  to  them,  so  that  it  may  not  be  said  you 
ever  opposed  a  national  aspiration.  After  that  proclamation, 
restore  King  Ferdinand  to  liberty,  and  withdraw  your  troops. 
Such  an  avowal,  made  in  a  lofty  tone,  and  when  the  enemy 
are  still  hesitating  on  our  frontier,  can  only  do  you  honor ; 
and  you  are  still  too  strong  for  it  to  be  regarded  as  a  coward- 
ly act." 

"  A  cowardly  act ! "  replied  Bonaparte ;  "  what  does  that 
matter  to  me  ?  Understand  that  I  should  not  fail  to  com- 
mit one,  if  it  were  useful  to  me.  In  reality,  there  is  nothing 
really  noble  or  base  in  this  world ;  I  have  in  my  character 
all  that  can  contribute  to  secure  my  power,  and  to  deceive 
those  who  think  they  know  me.  Frankly,  I  am  base,  essen- 
tially base.  I  give  you  my  word  that  I  should  feel  no  re- 
pugnance to  commit  what  would  be  called  by  the  world  a 
dishonorable  action ;  my  secret  tendencies,  which  are,  after 
all,  those  of  nature,  opposed  to  certain  affectations  of  great- 
ness with  which  I  have  to  adorn  myself,  give  me  infinite 
resources  with  which  to  baffle  every  one.  Therefore,  all  I 
have  to  do  now  is  to  consider  whether  your  advice  agrees 
with  my  present  policy,  and  to  try  and  find  out  besides,"  he 
added  (says  M.  de  Talleyrand),  with  a  satanic  smile,  "  wheth- 
er you  have  not  some  private  interest  in  urging  me  to  take 
this  step." 

Another  anecdote  which  bears  on  the  same  characteristic 
will  not  be  out  of  place  here.  Bonaparte,  when  on  the 
point  of  setting  out  for  Egypt,  went  to  see  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, then  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  under  the  Directory. 
"  I  was  in  bed,  being  ill,"  said  M.  de  Talleyrand.  "  Bona- 
parte sat  down  near  me,  and  divulged  to  me  all  the  dreams 
of  his  youthful  imagination.  I  was  interested  in  him  be- 
cause of  the  activity  of  his  mind,  and  also  on  account  of  the 
obstacles  which  I  was  aware  would  be  placed  in  his  way  by 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  7 

secret  enemies  of  whom  I  knew.  He  told  me  of  the  diffi- 
culty in  which  he  was  placed  for  want  of  money,  and  that 
he  did  not  know  where  to  get  any.  i  Stay,'  I  said  to  him  ; 
'  open  my  desk.  You  will  find  there  a  hundred  thousand 
francs  which  belong  to  me.  They  are  yours  for  the  present ; 
you  may  repay  the  money  when  you  return.'  Bonaparte 
threw  himself  on  my  neck,  and  I  was  really  delighted  to 
witness  his  joy.  When  he  became  Consul,  he  gave  me  back 
the  money  I  had  lent  him  ;  but  he  asked  me  one  day,  '  What 
interest  could  you  have  had  in  lending  me  that  money  ?  I 
have  thought  about  it  a  hundred  times  since  then,  and  have 
never  been  able  to  make  out  your  object.'  '  I  had  none,'  I 
replied.  '  I  was  feeling  very  ill :  it  was  quite  possible  I 
might  never  see  you  again ;  but  you  were  young,  you  had 
impressed  me  very  strongly,  and  I  felt  impelled  to  render 
you  a  service  without  any  afterthought  whatsoever.'  '  In 
that  case,'  said  Bonaparte,  '  and  if  it  was  really  done  without 
any  design,  you  acted  a  dupe's  part.' '' 

According  to  the  order  I  have  laid  down,  I  ought  now  to 
speak  of  Bonaparte's  heart ;  but,  if  it  were  possible  to  believe 
that  a  being,  in  every  other  way  similar  to  ourselves,  could 
exist  without  that  portion  of  our  organization  which  makes 
us  desire  to  love  and  to  be  loved,  I  should  say  that  in  his  cre- 
ation the  heart  was  left  out.  Perhaps,  however,  the  truth 
was  that  he  succeeded  in  suppressing  it  completely.  He  was 
always  too  much  engrossed  by  himself  to  be  influenced  by 
any  sentiment  of  affection,  no  matter  of  what  kind.  He  al- 
most ignored  the  ties  of  blood  and  the  rights  of  nature ;  I  do 
not  know  that  even  paternity  weighed  with  him.  It  seemed, 
at  least,  that  he  did  not  regard  it  as  his  primary  relation  with 
his  son.  One  day,  at  breakfast,  when,  as  was  often  the  case, 
Talma  had  been  admitted  to  see  him,  the  young  Napoleon 
was  brought  to  him.  The  Emperor  took  the  child  on  his 
knee,  and,  far  from  caressing,  amused  himself  by  slapping 
him,  though  not  so  as  to  hurt  him  ;  then,  turning  to  Talma, 
he  said,  "Talma,  tell  me  what  I  am  doing?"  Talma,  as 


8  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

may  be  supposed,  did  not  know  what  to  say.  "  You  do  not 
see  it,"  continued  the  Emperor ;  "  I  am  slapping  a  King." 

Notwithstanding  his  habitual  hardness,  Bonaparte  was 
not  entirely  without  experience  of  love.  But,  good  heav- 
ens !  what  manner  of  sentiment  was  it  in  his  case  ?  A  sen- 
sitive person  forgets  self  in  love,  and  becomes  almost  trans- 
formed ;  but  to  a  man  of  the  stamp  of  Bonaparte  it  only 
supplies  an  additional  sort  of  despotism.  The  Emperor  de- 
spised women,  and  contempt  can  not  exist  together  with  love. 
He  regarded  their  weakness  as  an  unanswerable  proof  of 
their  inferiority,  and  the  power  they  have  acquired  in  socie- 
ty as  an  intolerable  usurpation — a  result  and  an  abuse  of  the 
progress  of  that  civilization  which,  as  M.  de  Talleyrand  said, 
was  always  his  personal  enemy.  On  this  account  Bonaparte 
was  under  restraint  in  the  society  of  women  ;  and,  as  every 
kind  of  restraint  put  him  out  of  humor,  he  was  always  awk- 
ward in  their  presence,  and  never  knew  how  to  talk  to  them. 
It  is  true  that  the  women  with  whom  he  was  acquainted 
were  not  calculated  to  change  his  views  of  the  sex.  "We 
may  easily  imagine  the  nature  of  his  youthful  experiences. 
In  Italy  morals  were  utterly  depraved,  and  the  general  licen- 
tiousness was  augmented  by  the  presence  of  the  French 
army.  "When  he  returned  to  France  society  was  entirely 
broken  up  and  dispersed.  The  circle  that  surrounded  the 
Directory  was  a  corrupt  one,  and  the  Parisian  women  to 
whose  society  he  was  admitted  were  vain  and  frivolous,  the 
wives  of  men  of  business  and  contractors.  When  he  became 
Consul,  and  made  his  generals  and  his  aides-de-camp  marry, 
or  ordered  them  to  bring  their  wives  to  Court,  the  only 
women  he  had  about  him  were  timid  and  silent  girls,  newly 
married,  or  the  wives  of  his  former  comrades,  suddenly  with- 
drawn from  obscurity  by  the  good  fortune  of  their  husbands, 
and  ill  able  to  conform  to  the  change  in  their  position. 

I  am  disposed  to  believe  that  Bonaparte,  almost  always 
exclusively  occupied  by  politics,  was  never  awakened  to  love 
except  by  vanity.  He  thought  nothing  of  a  woman  except 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECD01E8.  9 

while  she  was  beautiful,  or  at  least  young.  He  would  prob- 
ably have  been  willing  to  subscribe  to  the  doctrine  that,  in  a 
well-organized  country,  we  should  be  killed — just  as  certain 
kinds  of  insects  are  destined  by  nature  to  a  speedy  death,  so 
soon  as  they  have  accomplished  the  task  of  maternity.  Yet 
Bonaparte  had  some  affection  for  his  first  wife ;  and,  if  he  was 
ever  really  stirred  by  any  emotion,  it  was  by  her  and  for  her. 
Even  a  Bonaparte  can  not  completely  escape  from  every  influ- 
ence, and  a  man's  character  is  composed,  not  of  what  he  is 
always,  but  of  what  he  is  most  frequently. 

Bonaparte  was  young  when  he  first  made  the  acquain- 
tance of  Mme.  de  Beauharnais,  who  was  greatly  superior  to 
the  rest  of  the  circle  in  which  she  moved,  both  by  reason 
of  the  name  she  bore  and  from  the  elegance  of  her  manners. 
She  attached  herself  to  him,  and  flattered  his  pride ;  she  pro- 
cured him  a  step  in  rank ;  he  became  accustomed  to  associate 
the  idea  of  her  influence  with  every  piece  of  good  fortune 
which  befell  him.  This  superstition,  which  she  kept  up 
very  cleverly,  exerted  great  power  over  him  for  a  long  time ; 
it  even  induced  him  more  than  once  to  delay  the  execution  of 
his  projects  of  divorce.  When  he  married  Mme.  de  Beau- 
harnais, Bonaparte  believed  that  he  was  allying  himself  to  a 
very  great  lady ;  his  marriage,  therefore,  was  one  conquest 
the  more.  I  shall  give  further  details  of  the  charm  she  exer- 
cised over  him  when  I  have  to  speak  more  particularly 
of  her. 

Notwithstanding  his  preference  for  her,  I  have  seen  him 
in  love  two  or  three  times,  and  it  was  on  those  occasions 
that  he  exhibited  the  full  measure  of  the  despotism  of  his 
character.  How  irritated  he  became  at  the  least  obstacle! 
How  roughly  he  put  aside  the  jealous  remonstrances  of  his 
wife !  "  It  is  your  place,"  he  said,  "  to  submit  to  all  my 
fancies,  and  you  ought  to  think  it  quite  natural  that  I  should 
allow  myself  amusements  of  this  kind.  I  have  a  right  to  an- 
swer all  your  complaints  by  an  eternal  I.  I  am  a  person 
apart ;  I  will  not  be  dictated  to  by  any  one."  But  he  soon 


10  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

began  to  desire  to  exercise  over  the  object  of  his  passing 
preference  an  authority  equal  to  that  by  which  he  silenced 
his  wife.  Astonished  that  any  one  should  have  any  ascen- 
dancy over  him,  he  speedily  became  angry  with  the  auda- 
cious individual,  and  he  would  abruptly  get  rid  of  the  object 
of  his  brief  passion,  having  let  the  public  into  the  transpa- 
rent secret  of  his  success. 

The  intellect  of  Bonaparte  was  most  remarkable.  It 
would  be  difficult,  I  think,  to  find  among  men  a  more  power- 
ful or  comprehensive  mind.  It  owed  nothing  to  education ; 
for,  in  reality,  he  was  ignorant,  reading  but  little,  and  that 
hurriedly.  But  he  quickly  seized  upon  the  little  he  learned, 
and  his  imagination  developed  it  so  extensively  that  he  might 
easily  have  passed  for  a  well-educated  man. 

His  intellectual  capacity  seemed  to  be  vast,  from  the 
number  of  subjects  he  could  take  in  and  classify  without 
fatigue.  With  him  one  idea  gave  birth  to  a  thousand,  and  a 
word  would  lift  his  conversation  into  elevated  regions  of 
fancy,  in  which  exact  logic  did  not  indeed  keep  him  com- 
pany, but  in  which  his  intellect  never  failed  to  shine. 

It  was  always  a  great  pleasure  to  me  to  hear  him  talk,  or 
rather  to  hear  him  hold  forth,  for  his  conversation  was  com- 
posed generally  of  long  monologues ;  not  that  he  objected  to 
replies  when  he  was  in  a  good  humor,  but,  for  many  reasons, 
it  was  not  always  easy  to  answer  him.  His  Court,  which  for 
a  long  time  was  entirely  military,  listened  to  his  least  word 
with  the  respect  that  is  paid  to  the  word  of  command ;  and 
afterward  it  became  so  numerous  that  any  individual  under- 
taking to  refute  him,  or  to  carry  on  a  dialogue  with  him,  felt 
like  an  actor  before  an  audience.  I  have  said  that  he  spoke 
badly,  but  his  language  was  generally  animated  and  brilliant ; 
his  grammatical  inaccuracies  sometimes  lent  his  sentences 
an  unexpected  strength,  very  suitable  to  the  originality  of 
his  ideas.  He  required  no  interlocutor  to  warm  him  up. 
He  would  dash  into  a  subject,  and  go  on  for  a  long  time, 
careful  to  notice,  however,  whether  he  was  followed,  and 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  H 

pleased  with  those  who  comprehended  and  applauded  him. 
Formerly,  to  know  how  to  listen  to  him  was  a  sure  and  easy 
way  of  pleasing  him.  Like  an  actor  who  becomes  excited 
by  the  effect  he  produces,  Bonaparte  enjoyed  the  admiration 
he  watched  for  closely  in  the  faces  of  his  audience.  I  re- 
member well  how,  because  he  interested  me  very  much  when 
he  spoke,  and  I  listened  to  him  with  pleasure,  he  proclaimed 
me  a  woman  of  intellect,  although  at  that  time  I  had  not 
addressed  two  consecutive  sentences  to  him. 

He  was  very  fond  of  talking  about  himself,  and  criticised 
himself  on  certain  points,  just  as  another  person  might  have 
done.  Eather  than  fail  to  make  the  most  out  of  his  own 
character,  he  would  not  have  hesitated  to  subject  it  to  the 
most  searching  analysis.  He  used  often  to  say  that  a  real 
politician  knows  how  to  calculate  even  the  smallest  profits 
that  he  can  make  out  of  his  defects ;  and  M.  de  Talleyrand 
carried  that  reflection  even  further.  I  once  heard  him  say, 
"  That  devil  of  a  man  deceives  one  on  all  points.  His  very- 
passions  mislead,  for  he  manages  to  dissemble  them  even 
when  they  really  exist."  I  can  recall  an  incident  which  will 
show  how,  when  he  found  it  useful,  he  could  pass  from  the 
most  complete  calm  to  the  most  violent  anger. 

A  little  while  before  our  last  rupture  with  England,  a 
rumor  was  spread  that  war  was  about  to  recommence,  and 
that  the  ambassador,  Lord  Whitworth,  was  preparing  to  leave 
Paris.  Once  a  month  the  First  Consul  was  in  the  habit  of 
receiving,  in  Mme.  Bonaparte's  apartments,  the  ambassadors 
and  their  wives.  This  reception  was  held  in  great  pomp. 
The  foreigners  were  ushered  into  a  drawing-room,  and  when 
they  were  all  there  the  First  Consul  would  appear,  accompa- 
nied by  his  wife.  Both  were  attended  by  a  prefect  and  a 
lady  of  the  palace.  To  each  of  them  the  ambassadors  and 
their  wives  were  introduced  by  name.  Mme.  Bonaparte 
would  take  a  seat ;  the  First  Consul  would  keep  up  the  con- 
versation for  a  longer  or  a  shorter  time,  according  to  his  con- 
venience, and  then  withdraw  with  a  slight  bow.  A  few 


12  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

days  before  the  breach  of  the  peace,  the  Corps  Diplomatique 
had  met  as  usual  at  the  Tuileries.  While  they  were  wait- 
ing, I  went  to  Mme.  Bonaparte's  apartment,  and  entered  the 
dressing-room,  where  she  was  finishing  her  toilet. 

The  First  Consul  was  sitting  on  the  floor,  playing  with 
little  Napoleon,  the  eldest  son  of  his  brother  Louis.  He 
presently  began  to  criticise  his  wife's  dress,  and  also  mine, 
giving  us  his  opinion  on  every  detail  of  our  costume.  He 
seemed  to  be  in  the  best  possible  humor.  I  remarked  this, 
and  said  to  him  that,  judging  by  appearances,  the  letters  the 
ambassadors  would  have  to  write,  after  the  approaching  audi- 
ence, would  breathe  nothing  but  peace  and  concord.  Bona- 
parte laughed,  and  went  on  playing  with  his  little  nephew. 

By-and-by  he  was  told  that  the  company  had  arrived. 
Then  he  rose  quickly,  the  gayety  vanished  from  his  face,  and 
I  was  struck  by  the  severe  expression  that  suddenly  replaced 
it :  he  seemed  to  grow  pale  at  will,  his  features  contracted  ; 
and  all  this  in  less  time  than  it  takes  me  to  describe  it.  "  Let 
us  go,  mesdames,"  said  he,  in  a  troubled  voice ;  and  then  he 
walked  on  quickly,  entered  the  drawing-room,  and,  without 
bowing  to  any  one,  advanced  to  the  English  ambassador. 
To  him  he  began  to  complain  bitterly  of  the  proceedings  of 
his  Government.  His  anger  seemed  to  increase  every  min- 
ute ;  it  soon  reached  a  height  which  terrified  the  assembly ; 
the  hardest  words,  the  most  violent  threats,  were  poured 
forth  by  his  trembling  lips.  No  one  dared  to  move.  Mme. 
Bonaparte  and  I  looked  at  each  other,  dumb  with  astonish- 
ment, and  every  one  trembled.  The  impassibility  of  the 
Englishman  was  even  disconcerted,  and  it  was  with  difficulty 
he  could  find  words  to  answer. 

Another  anecdote*  which  sounds  strange,  but  is  very 

*  The  Abbe  de  Pradt  relates  that  on  one  occasion,  after  a  violent  Bcene,  the 
Emperor  came  to  him  and  said :  "  You  thought  me  terribly  angry  ?  Undeceive 
yourself;  with  me  anger  never  goes  beyond  this."  And  he  passed  his  hand 
across  his  throat,  thus  indicating  that  his  passion  never  rose  high  enough  to 
disturb  his  head. 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  13 

characteristic,  proves  how  completely  he  could  command 
himself  when  he  chose  to  do  so. 

When  he  was  traveling,  or  even  during  a  campaign,  he 
never  failed  to  indulge  in  gallantries  which  he  regarded  as 
a  short  respite  from  business  or  battles.  His  brother-in-law 
Murat,  and  his  grand-marshal  Duroc,  were  charged  with  the 
task  of  procuring  him  the  means  of  gratifying  his  passing 
fancies.  On  the  occasion  of  his  first  entry  into  Poland, 
Murat,  who  had  preceded  him  to  Warsaw,  was  ordered 
to  find  for  the  Emperor,  who  would  shortly  arrive,  a  young 
and  pretty  mistress,  and  to  select  her  from  among  the  nobil- 
ity. He  acquitted  himself  cleverly  of  this  commission,  and 
induced  a  noble  young  Polish  lady,  who  was  married  to  an 
old  man,  to  comply  with  the  Emperor's  wishes.  Ko  one 
knows  what  means  he  employed,  or  what  were  his  promises ; 
but  at  last  the  lady  consented  to  go  in  the  evening  to  the 
castle  near  "Warsaw,  where  the  Emperor  was  lodged. 

The  fair  one  arrived  rather  late  at  her  destination.  She 
has  herself  narrated  this  adventure,  and  she  acknowledges, 
what  we  can  readily  believe,  that  she  arrived  agitated  and 
trembling. 

The  Emperor  was  in  his  cabinet.  The  lady's  arrival  was 
announced  to  him ;  but,  without  disturbing  himself,  he  or- 
dered her  to  be  conducted  to  her  apartment,  and  offered 
supper  and  a  bath,  adding  that  afterward  she  might  retire  to 
rest  if  she  chose.  Then  he  quietly  went  on  writing  until  a 
late  hour  at  night. 

At  last,  his  business  being  finished,  he  proceeded  to  the 
apartment  where  he  had  been  so  long  waited  for,  and  pre- 
sented himself  with  all  the  manner  of  a  master  who  disdains 
useless  preliminaries.  Without  losing  a  moment,  he  began  a 
singular  conversation  on  the  political  situation  of  Poland, 
questioning  the  young  lady  as  if  she  had  been  a  police  agent, 
and  demanding  some  very  circumstantial  information  respect- 
ing the  great  Polish  nobles  who  were  then  in  Warsaw.  He 
inquired  particularly  into  their  opinions  and  their  present  in- 


14  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

terests,  and  prolonged  this  extraordinary  interrogatory  for  a 
long  time.  The  astonishment  of  a  woman  twenty  years  of 
age,  who  was  not  prepared  for  such  a  cross-examination,  may 
be  imagined.  She  answered  him  as  well  as  she  could,  and 
only  when  she  could  tell  him  no  more  did  he  seem  to  remem- 
ber that  Murat  had  promised,  in  his  name,  an  interview  of  a 
more  tender  nature. 

This  extraordinary  wooing  did  not,  however,  prevent  the 
young  Polish  lady  from  becoming  attached  to  the  Emperor, 
for  their  liaison  was  prolonged  during  several  campaigns. 
Afterward  the  fair  Pole  came  to  Paris,  where  a  son  was 
born,  who  became  the  object  of  the  hopes  of  Poland,  the 
rallying  point  of  Polish  dreams  of  independence. 

I  saw  his  mother  when  she  was  presented  at  the  Imperial 
Court,  where  she  at  first  excited  the  jealousy  of  Mine.  Bona- 
parte ;  but  after  the  divorce  she  became  the  intimate  friend 
of  the  repudiated  Empress  at  Malmaison,  whither  she  often 
brought  her  son.  It  is  said  that  she  was  faithful  to  the  Em- 
peror in  his  misfortunes,  and  that  she  visited  him  more  than 
once  at  the  Isle  of  Elba.  He  found  her  again  in  France 
when  he  made  his  last  and  fatal  appearance  there.  But, 
after  his  second  fall  (I  do  not  know  at  what  time  she  became 
a  widow),  she  married  again,  and  she  died  in  Paris  this  year 
(1818).  I  had  these  details  from  M.  de  Talleyrand. 

I  will  now  resume  my  sketch.  Bonaparte  carried  self- 
ishness so  far  that  it  was  not  easy  to  move  him  about  any- 
thing that  did  not  concern  himself.  He  was,  however,  oc- 
casionally surprised,  as  it  were,  into  impulses  of  tenderness ; 
but  they  were  very  fugitive,  and  always  ended  in  ill  humor. 
It  was  not  uncommon  to  see  him  moved  even  to  the  point  of 
shedding  a  few  tears ;  they  seemed  to  arise  from  nervous  ir- 
ritation, of  which  they  became  the  crisis.  "I  have,"  he 
said,  "  very  unmanageable  nerves,,  and  at  these  times,  if  my 
blood  did  not  always  flow  slowly,  I  think  I  should  be  very 
likely  to  go  mad."  I  know,  indeed,  from  Corvisart,  that  his 
pulse  beat  more  slowly  than  is  usual  for  a  man's.  Bonaparte 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  15 

never  felt  what  is  commonly  called  giddiness,  and  lie  always 
said  that  the  expression,  "  My  head  is  going  round,"  con- 
veyed no  meaning  to  him.  It  was  not  only  from  the  ease 
with  which  he  yielded  to  all  his  impulses  that  he  often  used 
language  which  was  painful  and  distressing  to  those  whom 
he  addressed,  but  also  because  he  felt  a  secret  pleasure  in 
exciting  fear,  and  in  harassing  the  more  or  less  trembling 
individuals  before  him.  He  held  that  uncertainty  stimulates 
zeal,  and  therefore  he  rarely  displayed  satisfaction  with 
either  persons  or  things.  Admirably  served,  always  obeyed 
on  the  moment,  he  would  still  find  fault,  and  keep  every- 
body in  the  palace  in  dread  of  his  displeasure  about  some 
small  detail.  If  the  easy  flow  of  his  conversation  had  estab- 
lished for  the  time  a  sense  of  ease,  he  would  suddenly  imag- 
ine that  it  might  be  abused,  and  by  a  hard  and  imperious 
word  put  the  person  whom  he  had  welcomed  and  encouraged 
in  his  or  her  place  —  that  is  to  say,  in  fear.  He  hated  repose 
for  himself  and  grudged  it  to  others.  When  M.  de  Kemusat 
had  arranged  one  of  those  magnificent  fetes  where  all  the 
arts  were  laid  under  contribution  for  his  pleasure,  I  was 
never  asked  whether  the  Emperor  was  pleased,  but  whether 
he  had  grumbled  more  or  less.  His  service  was  the  severest 
of  toil.  He  has  been  heard  to  say,  in  one  of  those  moments 
when  the  strength  of  conviction  appeared  to  weigh  upon 
him,  "  The  truly  happy  man  is  he  who  hides  from  me  in 
the  country,  and  when  I  die  the  world  will  utter  a  great 


I  have  said  that  Bonaparte  was  incapable  of  generosity  ; 
and  yet  his  gifts  were  immense,  and  the  rewards  he  bestowed 
gigantic.  But,  when  he  paid  for  a  service,  he  made  it  plain 
that  he  expected  to  buy  another,  and  a  vague  uneasiness  as  to 
the  conditions  of  the  bargain  always  remained.  There  wag 
also  a  good  deal  of  caprice  in  his  gifts,  so  that  they  rarely  ex- 
cited gratitude.  Moreover,  he  required  that  the  money  he 
distributed  should  all  be  expended,  and  he  rather  liked  peo- 
ple to  contract  debts,  because  it  kept  them  in  a  state  of  de- 
5 


16  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  EtiMUSAT. 

pendence.  His  wife  gave  him  complete  satisfaction  in  the 
latter  particular,  and  he  would  never  put  her  affairs  in  order, 
so  that  he  might  keep  the  power  of  making  her  uneasy  in  his 
hands.  At  one  time  he  settled  a  considerable  revenue  on  M. 
de  R6musat,  that  we  might  keep  what  is  called  open  house, 
and  receive  a  great  many  foreigners.  We  were  very  exact 
in  the  first  expenses  demanded  by  a  great  establishment.  A 
little  while  after,  I  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  my  mother, 
and  was  forced  to  close  my  house.  The  Emperor  then  re- 
scinded all  his  gifts,  on  the  ground  that  we  could  not  keep 
the  engagement  we  had  made,  and  he  left  us  in  what  was 
really  a  position  of  embarrassment,  caused  entirely  by  his 
fugitive  and  burdensome  gifts.  I  pause  here.  If  I  carry 
out  the  plan  I  have  formed,  my  memory,  carefully  consulted, 
will  furnish  me  by  degrees  with  other  anecdotes  which  will 
complete  this  sketch.  What  I  have  already  written  will  suf- 
fice to  convey  an  idea  of  the  character  of  him  with  whom 
circumstances  connected  the  best  years  of  my  life. 

BONAPARTE'S  MOTHER. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  (nee  Ramolini)  was  married  in  1767  to 
Charles  Bonaparte,  who  belonged  to  one  of  the  noble  fami- 
lies of  Corsica.  It  is  said  that  there  had  been  a  liaison  be- 
tween her  and  M.  de  Marbeuf,  governor  of  the  island ;  and 
some  went  so  far  as  to  allege  that  Napoleon  was  the  son  of 
M.  de  Marbeuf.  It  is  certain  that  he  always  showed  kind- 
ness to  the  family  of  Marbeuf.  However  that  may  have 
been,  the  governor  had  Napoleon  Bonaparte  included  among 
the  number  of  noble  children  who  were  to  be  sent  from  Cor- 
sica to  France,  to  be  educated  at  a  military  school.  He  was 
placed  at  that  of  Brienne. 

The  English  having  become  masters  of  Corsica  in  1790, 
Mme.  Bonaparte,  a  rich  widow,  retired  to  Marseilles  with 
her  other  children.  Their  education  had  been  much  neg- 
lected, and,  if  we  are  to  accept  the  recollections  of  the  Mar- 
seillais  as  evidence,  her  daughters  had  not  been  brought  up 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  17 

under  the  strict  rule  of  a  scrupulous  morality.  The  Em- 
peror, indeed,  never  pardoned  the  town  of  Marseilles  for 
having  been  aware  of  the  position  his  family  occupied  at 
that  period,  and  the  disparaging  anecdotes  of  them  impru- 
dently repeated  by  certain  Provencals  seriously  militated 
against  the  interests  of  the  whole  of  Provence. 

The  widowed  Mme.  Bonaparte  established  herself  at 
Paris  on  her  son's  attainment  of  power.  She  lived  a  retired 
life,  amassing  as  much  money  as  possible ;  she  meddled  in 
no  public  matters,  and  neither  had  nor  wished  to  have  any 
influence.  Her  son  overawed  her,  as  he  did  all  the  rest  of 
the  world.  She  was  a  woman  of  very  ordinary  intelligence, 
who,  notwithstanding  the  rank  in  which  events  placed  her, 
never  did  anything  worthy  of  praise.  After  the  fall  of  the 
Empire  she  retired  to  Home,  where  she  lived  with  her  brother, 
Cardinal  Fesch.  It  is  said  that  he,  in  the  first  Italian  cam- 
paign, showed  himself  eager  to  profit  by  the  opportunity  of 
founding  his  fortune  which  then  presented  itself.  He  ac- 
quired, received,  or  even  took,  it  is  said,  a  considerable  quan- 
tity of  pictures,  statues,  and  valuable  articles,  which  have 
since  served  to  decorate  his  various  residences.  When  he 
afterward  became  a  Cardinal  and  Archbishop  of  Lyons,  he 
devoted  himself  wholly  to  the  duties  of  his  two  great  offices, 
and  in  the  end  he  acquired  a  most  honorable  reputation 
among  the  clergy.  He  often  opposed  the  Emperor  while 
his  disputes  with  the  Pope  were  pending,  and  was  not  one 
of  the  least  obstacles  to  the  execution  of  Bonaparte's  wishes 
on  the  occasion  of  the  futile  attempt  to  hold  a  council  at 
Paris.  Either  for  political  reasons  or  from  religious  motives, 
he  made  some  opposition  to  the  divorce ;  at  least,  the  Em- 
press Josephine  believed  him  to  have  done  so.  I  shall  go 
more  into  details  on  this  subject  hereafter.  The  Cardinal 
has,  since  his  retirement  to  Rome,  preserved  the  unvarying 
favor  of  the  Sovereign  Pontiff.* 

*  Mme.  Bonaparte,  born  in  1750,  died  in  1839.     Cardinal  Fesch,  born  at 
Ajaccio  the  3d  of  January,  1763,  died  at  Rome  the  13th  of  May,  1839.— P.  R. 


18  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

JOSEPH  BONAPARTE. 

Joseph  Bonaparte  was  born  in  1768.  He  has  a  hand- 
some face,  is  fond  of  the  society  of  women,  and  has  always 
been  remarkable  for  having  gentler  manners  than  any  of  his 
brothers.  Like  them,  however,  he  affects  astute  duplicity. 
His  ambition,  although  less  developed  than  that  of  Napo- 
leon, has  nevertheless  come  out  under  certain  circumstances, 
and  he  has  always  shown  capacity  enough  to  be  master  of  the 
situations  in  which  he  has  been  placed,  difficult  though  they 
have  often  been.  In  1805  Bonaparte  wished  to  make  Joseph 
King  of  Italy,  requiring  him,  however,  to  renounce  all  claim 
to  the  succession  to  the  throne  of  France.  This  Joseph  re- 
fused to  do.  He  always  adhered  tenaciously  to  what  he 
called  his  rights,  and  believed  himself  destined  to  give  the 
French  repose  from  the  turmoil  in  which  they  were  kept  by 
the  over-activity  of  his  brother.  He  understood  better  than 
Napoleon  how  to  carry  a  point  by  fair  means,  but  he  failed 
to  inspire  confidence.  He  is  amiable  in  domestic  life ;  but 
he  did  not  exhibit  much  ability,  either  on  the  throne  of 
Naples  or  on  that  of  Spain.  It  is  true  he  was  permitted  to 
reign  only  as  if  he  were  Napoleon's  lieutenant,  and  in  nei- 
ther country  did  he  inspire  personal  esteem  or  arouse  ani- 
mosity.* 

His  wife,  the  daughter  of  a  Marseilles  merchant  named 
Clary,  is  the  simplest  and  the  best  woman  in  the  world. 
Plain,  common-looking,  timid,  and  silent,  she  attracted  no 
attention,  either  at  the  Emperor's  Court,  or  when  she  suc- 
cessively wore  those  two  crowns  which  she  has  apparently 
lost  without  regret.  There  are  two  daughters  by  this  mar- 
riage. The  family  is  now  established  in  America.  The  sis- 
ter of  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  married  to  General  Bernadotte, 
now  King  of  Sweden.  She,  who  was  not  a  commonplace 
person,  had  before  her  marriage  been  very  much  in  love  with 
Napoleon,  and  appears  to  have  always  preserved  the  memory 

*  Joseph  Bonaparte  died  at  Florence,  the  28th  of  July,  1844.— P.  R. 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  19 

of  that  feeling.  It  has  been  supposed  that  her  hardly 
extinguished  passion  caused  her  obstinate  refusal  to  leave 
France.  She  lives  in  Paris  at  present,  where  she  leads  a 
very  retired  life.* 

LTTCIEN  BONAPARTE. 

Lucien  Bonaparte  has  a  great  deal  of  ability.  He  dis- 
played a  taste  for  the  arts  and  for  certain  kinds  of  literature 
at  an  early  age.  As  a  deputy  from  Corsica,  some  of  his 
speeches  in  the  Council  of  the  Five  Hundred  were  remarked 
at  the  time ;  among  others,  that  which  he  made  on  the  22d 
of  September,  1798,  the  anniversary  of  the  foundation  of 
the  Republic.  He  there  defined  the  oath  that  each  member 
of  the  Council  ought  to  take — to  watch  over  the  constitution 
and  liberty,  and  to  execrate  any  Frenchman  who  should  en- 
deavor to  reestablish  royalty.  On  General  Jourdan's  express- 
ing some  fears  relative  to  the  rumors  that  the  Council  was 
menaced  with  a  speedy  overthrow,  Lucien  reminded  them  of 
the  existence  of  a  decree  which  pronounced  outlawry  on  all 
who  should  attack  the  inviolability  of  the  national  repre- 
sentation. It  is  probable  that  all  the  time  he  had  a  secret 
understanding  with  his  brother,  and  was  awaiting  like  him 
the  approach  of  the  hour  when  they  might  lay  the  founda- 
tion for  the  elevation  of  their  family.  There  were,  however, 
some  constitutional  ideas  in  Lucien' s  head ;  and,  perhaps,  if 
he  had  been  able  to  preserve  any  influence  over  his  brother, 
he  might  have  opposed  the  indefinite  growth  of  arbitrary 
power.  He  succeeded  in  sending  information  to  Napoleon 
in  Egypt  of  the  state  of  affairs  in  France ;  and,  having  thus 
hastened  his  brother's  return,  he  aided  him  effectually,  as  is 
well  known,  in  the  revolution  of  the  18th  Brumaire,  1799. 

Lucien  afterward  became  minister  of  the  interior,  then 
Ambassador  to  Spain,  and  in  both  capacities  he  gave  offense 
to  the  First  Consul.  Bonaparte  did  not  like  to  remember 

*  The  Queen  of  Sweden  died  a  few  years  ago,  after  having  long  lived  in 
Paris,  in  the  Rue  d'Anjou,  Saint  Honore. 


20  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

services  which  had  been  rendered  to  him,  and  Lucien  was  in 
the  habit  of  reminding  him  of  them  in  an  aggressive  manner 
during  their  frequent  altercations. 

While  he  was  in  Spain  he  became  very  intimate  with  the 
Prince  of  the  Peace,  and  assisted  to  arrange  the  treaty  of 
Badajoz,*  which  on  that  occasion  saved  Portugal  from  inva- 
sion. . 

He  received  a  sum  which  has  been  estimated  at  five  hun- 
dred millions  of  francs  as  a  reward  for  his  services.  This 
was  paid  partly  in  money,  and  partly  in  diamonds.  At  this 
time  he  also  formed  a  project  of  marriage  between  Bona- 
parte and  an  Infanta  of  Spain ;  but  Napoleon,  either  from 
affection  for  his  wife,  or  from  fear  of  exciting  the  suspicions 
of  the  republicans,  with  whom  he  was  still  keeping  on  terms, 
rejected  the  idea  of  this  marriage,  which  was  to  have  been 
concluded  through  the  agency  of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace. 

In  1790  Lucien  Bonaparte,  who  was  then  keeper  of  the 
military  stores  near  Toulon,  had  married  the  daughter  of  an 
innkeeper,  who  bore  him  two  daughters,  and  who  died  a  few 
years  later.  The  elder  of  these  two  girls  was  in  after  years 
recalled  to  France  by  the  Emperor,  who,  when  he  saw  his 
affairs  going  badly  in  Spain,  wished  to  treat  for  peace  with 
the  Prince  of  the  Asturias,  and  to  make  him  marry  this 
daughter  of  Lucien's.  But  the  young  girl,  who  was  placed 
under  her  grandmother's  care,  too  frankly  imparted  in  her 
letters  to  her  father  the  impression  she  received  at  her  uncle's 
Court ;  she  ridiculed  the  most  important  personages,  and  her 
letters,  having  been  opened,  so  irritated  the  Emperor  that  he 
sent  her  back  to  Italy. 

In  1803  Lucien,  now  a  widower  and  entirely  devoted  to 
a  life  of  pleasure,  to  which  I  might  indeed  give  a  harsher 
name,  fell  suddenly  in  love  with  Mme.  Jouberthon,  the  wife 
of  a  stock-broker.  Her  husband  was  promptly  sent  to  Saint 
Domingo,  where  he  died,  and  then  this  beautiful  and  clever 
woman  managed  to  make  Lucien  marry  her,  despite  the  op- 
*  June  6,  1801.— P.  R. 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  21 

position  of  the  First  Consul.  An  open  rupture  took  place  be- 
tween the  two  brothers  on  that  occasion.  Lucien  left  France 
in  the  spring  of  1804,  and  established  himself  at  Rome. 

It  is  well  known  that  since  then  he  has  devoted  himself 
to  the  interests  of  the  Pope,  and  has  adroitly  secured  his 
protection ;  so  much  so  that  even  now,  although  he  was  re- 
called to  Paris  at  the  period  of  the  fatal  enterprise  of  1815, 
he  was  permitted  to  return,  after  the  second  restoration  of 
the  King,  to  the  Roman  States,  and  live  quietly  with  those 
members  of  his  family  who  had  retired  thither.  Lucien  was 
born  in  1775.* 

LOUIS   BONAPABTE. 

Louis  Bonaparte,  born  in  1778,  is  a  man  concerning 
whom  opinions  have  differed  widely.  His  assumption  of  a 
stricter  morality,  than  that  of  other  members  of  his  family, 
his  odd  opinions — based,  however,  on  daring  theories  rather 
than  on  solid  principles — have  deceived  the  world,  and  made 
for  him  a  reputation  apart  from  that  of  his  brothers.  With 
much  less  talent  than  either  Napoleon  or  Lucien,  he  has  a 
touch  of  romance  in  his  imagination,  which  he  manages  to 
combine  with  complete  hardness  of  heart.  Habitual  ill 
health  blighted  his  youth,  and  has  added  to  the  harsh  mel- 
ancholy of  his  disposition.  I  do  not  know  whether,  had  he 
been  left  to  himself,  the  ambition  so  natural  to  all  his  family 
would  have  been  developed  in  him;  but  he  has,  at  least, 
shown  upon  several  occasions  that  he  considered  himself  en- 
titled to  profit  by  the  chances  which  circumstances  have 
thrown  in  his  way.  He  has  been  applauded  for  wishing  to 
govern  Holland  in  the  interests  of  the  country,  in  spite  of 
his  brother's  projects,  and  his  abdication,  although  it  was  due 
to  a  whim  rather  than  to  generous  feeling,  has  certainly  done 
him  honor.  It  is,  after  all,  the  best  action  of  his  life. 

Louis  Bonaparte  is  essentially  egotistical  and  suspicious. 
In  the  course  of  these  Memoirs  he  will  become  better  known. 

*  Lucien  Bonaparte  died  at  Viterbo,  June  30,  1840.— P.  R. 


22  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

Bonaparte  said  of  him  one  day,  "  His  feigned  virtues  give 
me  almost  as  much  trouble  as  Lucien's  vices."  He  has  re- 
tired to  Rome  since  the  downfall  of  his  family. 

MADAME  JOSEPHINE  BONAPARTE  AND  HER  FAMILY. 

The  Marquis  de  Beauharnais,  father  of  the  general  who 
was  the  first  husband  of  Mme.  Bonaparte,  having  been  em- 
ployed in  a  military  capacity  at  Martinique,  became  attached 
to  an  aunt  of  Mme.  Bonaparte's,  with  whom  he  returned  to 
France,  and  whom  he  married  in  his  old  age. 

This  aunt  brought  her  niece,  Josephine  de  la  Pagerie,  to 
France.  She  had  her  educated,  and  made  use  of  her  ascen- 
dancy over  her  aged  husband  to  marry  her  niece,  at  the  age 
of  fifteen  years,  to  young  Beauharnais,  her  stepson.  Al- 
though he  married  her  against  his  inclination,  there  is  no 
doubt  that  at  one  time  he  was  much  attached  to  his  wife ; 
for  I  have  seen  very  loving  letters  written  by  him  to  her 
when  he  was  in  garrison,  and  she  preserved  them  with  great 
care.  Of  this  marriage  were  born  Eugene  and  Hortense. 
When  the  Revolution  began,  I  think  that  Beauharnais's  love 
for  his  wife  had  cooled.  At  the  commencement  of  the  Ter- 
ror M.  de  Beauharnais  was  still  commanding  the  French 
armies,  and  had  no  longer  any  relations  with  his  wife. 

I  do  not  know  under  what  circumstances  she  became  ac- 
quainted with  certain  deputies  of  the  Convention,  but  she 
had  some  influence  with  them ;  and,  as  she  was  kind-hearted 
and  obliging,  she  used  it  to  do  as  much  good  to  as  many  peo- 
ple as  possible.  From  that  time  her  reputation  for  good 
conduct  was  very  much  damaged;  but  her  kindness,  her 
grace,  and  the  sweetness  of  her  manners  could  not  be  dis- 
puted. She  served  my  father's  interests  more  than  once 
with  Barrere  and  Tallien,  and  owed  to  this  my  mother's 
friendship.  In  1793  chance  placed  her  in  a  village  on  the 
outskirts  of  Paris,  where,  like  her,  we  were  passing  the  sum- 
mer. Our  near  neighborhood  led  to  some  intimacy.  I  re- 
member that  Hortense,  who  was  three  or  four  years  younger 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  23 

than  I,  used  to  visit  me  in  my  room,  and,  while  amusing  her- 
self by  examining  my  little  trinkets,  she  would  tell  me  that 
all  her  ambition  for  the  future  was  to  be  the  owner  of  a  simi- 
lar treasure.  Unhappy  woman !  She  has  since  been  laden 
with  gold  and  diamonds,  and  how  has  she  not  groaned  under 
the  crushing  weight  of  the  royal  diadem ! 

In  those  evil  days  when  every  one  was  forced  to  seek  a 
place  of  safety  from  the  persecution  by  which  all  classes  of 
society  were  beset,  we  lost  sight  of  Mme.  de  Beauharnais. 
Her  husband,  being  suspected  by  the  Jacobins,  had  been 
thrown  into  prison  in  Paris,  and  condemned  to  death  by  the 
Revolutionary  Tribunal.  She  also  was  imprisoned,  but  es- 
caped the  guillotine,  which  preyed  on  all  without  distinction. 
Being  a  friend  of  the  beautiful  Mme.  Tallien,  she  was  intro- 
duced into  the  society  of  the  Directory,  and  was  especially 
favored  by  Barras.  Mme.  de  Beauharnais  had  very  little 
fortune,  and  her  taste  for  dress  and  luxury  rendered  her  de- 
pendent on  those  who  could  help  her  to  indulge  it.  With- 
out being  precisely  pretty,  she  possessed  many  personal 
charms.  Her  features  were  delicate,  her  expression  was 
sweet;  her  mouth  was  very  small,  and  concealed  her  bad 
teeth ;  her  complexion  was  rather  dark,  but  with  the  help  of 
red  and  white  skillfully  applied  she  remedied  that  defect ; 
her  figure  was  perfect ;  her  limbs  were  flexible  and  delicate  ; 
her  movements  were  easy  and  elegant.  La  Fontaine's  line 
could  never  have  been  more  fitly  applied  than  to  her  : 

"  Et  la  grace,  plus  belle  encore  que  la  beaut6." 

She  dressed  with  perfect  taste,  enhancing  the  beauty  of 
what  she  wore ;  and,  with  these  advantages  and  the  constant 
care  bestowed  upon  her  attire,  she  contrived  to  avoid  being 
eclipsed  by  the  youth  and  beauty  of  many  of  the  women  by 
whom  she  was  surrounded.  To  all  this,  as  I  have  already 
said,  she  added  extreme  kindness  of  heart,  a  remarkably  even 
temper,  and  great  readiness  to  forget  any  wrong  that  had 
been  done  to  her. 


24:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

She  was  not  a  person  of  remarkable  intellect.  A  Creole, 
and  frivolous,  her  education  had  been  a  good  deal  neglected ; 
but  she  recognized  her  deficiencies,  and  never  made  blunders 
in  conversation.  She  possessed  true  natural  tact ;  she  readily 
found  pleasant  things  to  say ;  her  memory  was  good — a  use- 
ful quality  for  those  in  high  position.  Unhappily,  she  was 
deficient  in  depth  of  feeling  and  elevation  of  mind.  She 
preferred  to  charm  her  husband  by  her  beauty,  rather  than 
the  influence  of  certain  virtues.  She  carried  complaisance 
to  excess  for  his  sake,  and  kept  her  hold  on  him  by  conces- 
sions which,  perhaps,  contributed  to  increase  the  contempt 
with  which  he  habitually  regarded  women.  She  might  have 
taught  him  some  useful  lessons;  but  she  feared  him,  and 
allowed  him  to  dictate  to  her  in  everything.  She  was 
changeable,  easy  to  move  and  easy  to  appease,  incapable  of 
prolonged  emotion,  of  sustained  attention,  of  serious  reflec- 
tion; and,  although  her  greatness  did  not  turn  her  head, 
neither  did  it  educate  her.  The  bent  of  her  character  led 
her  to  console  the  unhappy ;  but  she  could  only  dwell  on  the 
troubles  of  individuals — she  did  not  think  of  the  woes  of 
France.  The  genius  of  Bonaparte  overawed  her :  she  only 
criticised  him  in  what  concerned  herself  personally ;  in 
everything  else  she  respected  what  he  called  "  the  force  of 
his  destiny."  He  exerted  an  evil  influence  over  her,  for  he 
inspired  her  with  contempt  for  morality,  and  with  a  large 
share  of  his  own  characteristic  suspicion ;  and  he  taught  her- 
the  art  of  lying,  which  each  of  them  practiced  with  skill  and 
effect. 

It  is  said  that  she  was  the  prize  of  his  command  of  the 
army  of  Italy ;  she  has  often  assured  me  that  at  that  time 
Bonaparte  was  really  in  love  with  her.  She  hesitated  be- 
tween him,  General  Hoche,  and  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  who 
also  loved  her.  Bonaparte  prevailed.  I  know  that  my 
mother,  then  living  in  retirement  in  the  country,  was  much 
surprised  on  learning  that  the  widow  of  M.  de  Beauharnais 
was  about  to  marry  a  man  so  little  known  as  Bonaparte. 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  35 

When  I  questioned  her  as  to  what  Bonaparte  was  like  in 
his  youth,  she  told  me  that  he  was  then  dreamy,  silent,  and 
awkward  in  the  society  of  women,  but  passionate  and  fasci- 
nating, although  rather  an  odd  person  in  every  way.  She 
charged  the  campaign  in  Egypt  with  having  changed  his 
temper,  and  developed  that  petty  despotism  from  which  she 
afterward  suffered  so  much. 

I  have  seen  letters  from  Napoleon  to  Mme.  Bonaparte, 
written  at  the  time  of  the  first  Italian  campaign.  She  ac- 
companied him  to  Italy,  but  he  sometimes  left  her  with  the 
rearguard  of  the  army,  until  a  victory  had  secured  the  safe- 
ty of  the  road.  These  epistles  are  very  singular.  The  writ- 
ing is  almost  illegible  ;  they  are  ill  spelt ;  the  style  is  strange 
and  confused.  But  there  is  in  them  such  a  tone  of  passion- 
ate feeling ;  the  expressions  are  so  animated,  and  at  the  same 
time  so  poetical ;  they  breathe  a  love  so  different  from  mere 
"  amours,"  that  there  is  no  woman  who  would  not  have  prized 
such  letters.  They  formed  a  striking  contrast  with  the  grace- 
ful, elegant,  and  measured  style  of  those  of  M.  de  Beauhar- 
nais.  How  strange  it  must  have  been  for  a  woman  to  find 
herself  one  of  the  moving  powers  of  the  triumphant  march 
of  an  army,  at  a  time  when  politics  alone  governed  the  ac- 
tions of  men !  On  the  eve  of  one  of  his  greatest  battles, 
Bonaparte  wrote :  "  I  am  far  from  you !  It  seems  to  me 
that  I  am  surrounded  by  the  blackest  night ;  I  need  the  lurid 
light  of  the  thunderbolts  which  we  are  about  to  hurl  upon 
our  enemies  to  dispel  the  darkness  into  which  your  absence 
has  thrown  me.  Josephine,  you  wept  when  I  parted  from 
you — you  wept !  At  that  thought  all  my  being  trembles. 
But  calm  yourself  :  "Wurmser  shall  pay  dearly  for  the  tears 
I  have  seen  you  shed."  And  on  the  morrow  "Wurmser  was 
beaten. 

The  enthusiasm  with  which  General  Bonaparte  was  re- 
ceived in  beautiful  Italy,  the  magnificence  of  the  fetes,  the 
fame  of  his  victories,  the  wealth  which  every  officer  might 
acquire  there,  the  unbounded  luxury  in  which  she  lived, 


26  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

accustomed  Mme.  Bonaparte  from  that  time  forth  to  all  the 
pomp  with  which  she  was  afterward  surrounded ;  and  she 
acknowledged  that  nothing  in  her  life  ever  equaled  the 
emotions  of  that  time,  when  love  came  (or  seemed  to  come) 
daily,  to  lay  at  her  feet  a  new  conquest  over  a  people  enrap- 
tured with  their  conqueror.  It  is,  however,  plain  from  these 
letters  that  Mme.  -Bonaparte,  in  Ijhe  midst  of  this  life  of 
triumph,  of  victory,  and  of  license,  gave  some  cause  for 
uneasiness  to  her  victorious  husband.  His  letters,  some- 
times sullen  and  sometimes  menacing,  reveal  the  torments 
of  jealousy;  and  they  abound  in  melancholy  reflections, 
which  betray  his  weariness  of  the  fleeting  delusions  of  life. 
It  may  have  been  that  these  misunderstandings,  which  out- 
raged the  first  very  keen  feelings  Bonaparte  had  ever  ex- 
perienced, had  a  bad  effect  upon  him,  and  hardened  him  by 
degrees.  Perhaps  he  would  have  been  a  better  man  if  he 
had  been  more  and  better  loved. 

When,  on  his  return  from  this  brilliant  campaign,  the 
conquering  general  was  obliged  to  exile  himself  to  Egypt,  to 
escape  from  the  growing  suspicion  of  the  Directory,  Mme. 
Bonaparte's  position  became  precarious  and  difficult.  Her 
husband  entertained  serious  doubts  of  her,  and  these  were 
prompted  by  Joseph  and  Lucien,  who  dreaded  the  powerful 
influence  that  she  might  exercise  through  her  son,  who  had 
accompanied  Bonaparte.  Her  extravagant  tastes  led  her 
into  reckless  expense,  and  she  was  harassed  by  debts  and 
duns. 

Before  leaving  France,  Bonaparte  had  directed  her  to 
purchase  an  estate ;  and  as  she  wished  to  live  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  Saint  Germain,  where  her  daughter  was  being 
educated,  she  selected  Malmaison.  There  we  met  her  again, 
when  we  were  residing  for  some  months  at  the  chateau  of 
one  of  our  friends,  *  at  a  short  distance  from  Malmaison. 

*  Mme.  de  Vergennes  was  very  intimate  with  M.  Chanorier,  a  wealthy  and 
intelligent  man  living  at  Croissy,  on  the  bank  of  the  Seine,  and  who  was  one  of 
the  first  to  introduce  the  merino  sheep  into  France.  It  was  from  Croissy  that 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  37 

Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  naturally  unreserved,  and  even 
indiscreet,  had  no  sooner  met  my  mother  again  than  she 
talked  to  her  very  freely  about  her  absent  husband,  about 
her  brothers-in-law — in  fact,  about  a  host  of  people  who 
were  utter  strangers  to  us.  Bonaparte  was  supposed  to  be 
almost  lost  to  France,  and  his  wife  was  neglected.  My 
mother  took  pity  on  her;  we  showed  her  some  attention, 
which  she  never  forgot.  At  that  time  I  was  seventeen  years 
ef  age,  and  I  had  been  married  one  year. 

It  was  at  Malmaison  that  Mme.  Bonaparte  showed  us  an 
immense  quantity  of  pearls,  diamonds,  and  cameos,  which  at 
that  time  constituted  the  contents  of  her  jewel-case.  Even 
at  that  time  it  might  have  figured  in  a  story  of  the  "  Arabian 
Nights,"  and  it  was  destined  to  receive  immense  accessions. 
Invaded  and  grateful  Italy  had  contributed  to  these  riches, 
and  the  Pope  also,  as  a  mark  of  his  appreciation  of  the  re- 
spect with  which  the  conqueror  treated  him  by  denying  him- 
self the  pleasure  of  planting  his  flag  upon  the  walls  of  Rome. 
The  reception-rooms  at  Malmaison  were  sumptuously  deco- 
rated with  pictures,  statues,  and  mosaics,  the  spoils  of  Italy, 
and  each  of  the  generals  who  figured  in  the  Italian  campaign 
exhibited  booty  of  the  same  kind. 

Although  she  was  surrounded  with  all  these  treasures, 
Mme.  Bonaparte  was  often  without  money  to  meet  her  every- 
day expenses ;  and,  to  get  out  of  this  difficulty,  she  trafficked 
in  her  influence  with  the  people  in  power  at  the  time,  and 
compromised  herself  by  entering  into  imprudent  relations. 
Dreadfully  embarrassed,  on  worse  terms  than  ever  with  her 
brothers-in-law,  supplying  too  much  reason  for  their  accusa- 
tions against  her,  and  no  longer  counting  on  the  return  of 
her  husband,  she  was  strongly  tempted  to  give  her  daughter 
in  marriage  to  the  son  of  Rewbell,  a  member  of  the  Direc- 
tory ;  but  Mile,  de  Beauharnais  would  not  consent,  and  her 

she  and  her  daughters  made  a  neighborly  visit  to  Malmaison,  and  resumed  with 
Mme.  Bonaparte  their  former  intimacy  with  Mme.  de  Beauharnais. 


28  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

opposition  put  an  end  to  a  project  whose  execution  would 
doubtless  have  been  highly  displeasing  to  Bonaparte. 

Presently  a  rumor  of  Bonaparte's  arrival  at  Frej'us  arose. 
He  came  back  with  his  mind  full  of  the  evil  reports  that 
Lucien  had  repeated  to  him  in  his  letters.  His  wife,  on  hear- 
ing of  his  disembarkation,  set  out  to  join  him ;  she  missed 
him,  had  to  retrace  her  steps,  and  returned  to  the  house  in 
the  Rue  Chantereine  some  hours  after  his  arrival  there.  She 
descended  from  her  carriage  in  haste,  followed  by  her  son 
and  daughter,  and  ran  up  the  stairs  leading  to  his  room ;  but 
what  was  her  surprise  to  find  the  door  locked !  She  called  to 
Bonaparte,  and  begged  him  to  open  it.  He  replied  through  the 
door  that  it  should  never  again  be  opened  for  her.  Then  she 
wept,  fell  on  her  knees,  implored  him  for  her  sake  and  that 
of  her  two  children ;  but  all  was  profound  silence  around  her, 
and  several  hours  of  the  night  passed  over  her  in  this  dread- 
ful suspense.  At  last,  however,  moved  by  her  sobs  and  her 
perseverance,  Bonaparte  opened  the  door  at  about  four  o'clock 
in  the  morning,  and  appeared,  as  Mme.  Bonaparte  herself 
told  me,  with  a  stern  countenance,  which,  however,  betrayed 
that  he  too  had  been  weeping.  He  bitterly  reproached  her 
with  her  conduct,  her  forgetfulness  of  him,  all  the  real  or 
imaginary  sins  of  which  Lucien  had  accused  her,  and  con- 
cluded by  announcing  an  eternal  separation.  Then  turning 
to  Eugene  de  Beauharnais,  who  was  at  that  time  about  twenty 
years  old — "  As  for  you,"  he  said,  "  you  shall  not  bear  the 
burden  of  your  mother's  faults.  You  shall  be  always  my 
son ;  I  will  keep  you  with  me." 

"  No,  no,  General,"  replied  Eugene ;  "  I  must  share  the 
ill  fortune  of  my  mother,  and  from  this  moment  I  say  fare- 
well to  you." 

These  words  shook  Bonaparte's  resolution.  He  opened 
his  arms  to  Eugene,  weeping ;  his  wife  and  Hortense  knelt 
at  his  feet  and  embraced  his  knees ;  and,  soon  after,  all  was 
forgiven.  In  the  explanation  that  ensued,  Mme.  Bonaparte 
succeeded  in  clearing  herself  from  the  accusations  of  her 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  29 

brother-in-law ;  and  Bonaparte,  then  burning  to  avenge  her, 
sent  for  Lucien  at  seven  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  had  him, 
without  any  forewarning,  ushered  into  the  room  where  the 
husband  and  wife,  entirely  reconciled,  occupied  the  same  bed. 

From  that  time  Bonaparte  desired  his  wife  to  break  with 
Mme.  Tallien  and  all  the  society  of  the  Directory.  The  18th 
Brumaire  completely  severed  her  connection  with  those  indi- 
viduals. She  told  me  that  on  the  eve  of  that  important  day 
she  observed,  with  great  surprise,  that  Bonaparte  had  loaded 
two  pistols  and  placed  them  beside  his  bed.  On  her  ques- 
tioning him,  he  replied  that  a  certain  event  might  happen  in 
the  night  which  would  render  such  a  precaution  necessary. 
Then,  without  another  word,  he  lay  down,  and  slept  soundly 
until  the  next  morning. 

When  he  became  Consul,  the  gentle  and  gracious  quali- 
ties of  his  wife,  which  attracted  many  persons  to  his  Court 
whom  his  natural  rudeness  would  have  otherwise  kept  away, 
were  of  great  service  to  him.  To  Josephine  he  intrusted  the 
measures  to  be  taken  for  the  return  of  the  emigres.  Nearly 
all  the  "  erasures  "  *  passed  through  the  hands  of  Mme.  Bona- 
parte ;  she  was  the  first  link  that  united  the  French  nobility 
to  the  Consular  Government.  We  shall  learn  more  of  this 
in  the  course  of  these  Memoirs. 

Eugene  de  Beauharnais,  born  in  1780,  passed  through  all 
the  phases  of  a  sometimes  stormy  and  sometimes  brilliant 
life,  without  ever  forfeiting  his  title  to  general  esteem. 
Prince  Eugene,  sometimes  in  camp  with  his  father,  some- 
times in  all  the  leisure  and  luxury  of  his  mother's  house, 
was,  to  speak  correctly,  educated  nowhere.  His  natural  in- 
stinct led  toward  what  is  right ;  the  schooling  of  Bonaparte 
formed  but  did  not  pervert  him  ;  the  lessons  taught  him  by 
events — -all  these  were  his  instructors.  Mme.  Bonaparte  was 
incapable  of  giving  sound  advice ;  and  therefore  her  son,  who 
loved  her  sincerely,  perceived  very  early  in  his  career  that 
it  was  useless  to  consult  her. 

*  See  Appendix. 


30  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

Prince  Eugene  did  not  lack  personal  attractions.  His 
figure  was  graceful ;  lie  was  skilled  in  all  bodily  exercises ; 
and  he  inherited  from  his  father  that  fine  manner  of  the  old 
French  gentleman,  in  which,  perhaps,  M.  de  Beauharnais 
himself  gave  him  his  earliest  lessons.  To  these  advantages 
he  added  simplicity  and  kindheartedness ;  he  was  neither 
vain  nor  presumptuous  ;  he  was  sincere  without  being  in- 
discreet, and  could  be  silent  when  silence  was  necessary. 
Prince  Eugene  had  not  much  natural  talent ;  his  imagination 
was  not  vivid,  and  his  feelings  were  not  keen.  He  was  al- 
ways obedient  to  his  stepfather  ;  and,  although  he  appre- 
ciated him  exactly,  and  was  not  mistaken  with  regard  to 
him,  he  never  hesitated  to  observe  the  strictest  fidelity  to 
him,  even  when  it  was  against  his  own  interests.  Never 
once  was  he  surprised  into  showing  any  sign  of  discontent, 
either  when  the  Emperor,  while  loading  his  own  family  with 
honors,  seemed  to  forget  him,  or  when  his  mother  was  re- 
pudiated. At  the  time  of  the  divorce  Eugene  maintained  a 
very  dignified  attitude. 

Eugene,  as  colonel  of  a  regiment,  was  beloved  by  his  sol- 
diers. In  Italy  he  was  held  in  high  honor.  The  sovereigns 
of  Europe  esteemed  him,  and  the  world  was  well  pleased 
that  his  fortunes  have  survived  those  of  his  family.  He  had 
the  good  fortune  to  marry  a  charming  princess,  who  never 
ceased  to  love  him,  and  whom  he  rendered  happy.  He  pos- 
sessed in  perfection  those  qualities  which  make  the  happi- 
ness of  home  life — sweet  temper,  and  that  natural  cheerful- 
ness which  rises  above  every  ill,  and  was  perhaps  due  to 
the  fact  that  he  was  never  profoundly  moved  by  anything. 
When,  however,  that  kind  of  indifference  toward  the  inter- 
ests of  other  people  is  also  displayed  in  one's  own  personal 
troubles,  it  may  fairly  be  called  philosophy. 

Hortense,  Prince  Eugene's  younger  sister  (she  was  born  in 
1783),  was,  I  think,  the  most  unhappy  person  of  our  time, 
and  the  least  formed  by  nature  to  be  so.  Cruelly  slandered 
by  the  Bonapartes,  who  hated  her,  included  in  the  accusa- 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  31 

tions  which  the  public  delighted  to  bring  against  all  who  be- 
longed to  that  family,  she  was  not  strong  enough  to  contend 
against  such  a  combination  of  ills,  and  to  defy  the  calumnies 
that  blighted  her  life.* 

Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte,  like  her  mother  and  brother,  was 
not  remarkable  for  intellect ;  but,  like  them,  she  possessed 
tact  and  good  feeling,  and  she  was  more  high-minded  and 
imaginative  than  they.  Left  to  herself  in  her  youth,  she  es- 
caped the  contagion  of  the  dangerous  example  of  evil.  At 
Mme.  Campan's  select  and  elegant  boarding-school  she  ac- 
quired accomplishments  rather  than  education.  While  she 
was  young,  a  brilliant  complexion,  beautiful  hair,  and  a  fine 
figure  rendered  her  agreeable  to  look  upon;  but  she  lost 
her  teeth  early,  and  illness  and  sorrow  altered  her  features. 
Her  natural  instincts  were  good ;  but,  being  absolutely  igno- 
rant of  the  world  and  the  usages  of  society,  and  entirely  given 
up  to  ideal  notions  drawn  from  a  sphere  which  she  had  cre- 
ated for  herself,  she  was  unable  to  rule  her  life  by  those 
social  laws  which  do  not  indeed  preserve  the  virtue  of 
women,  but  which  procure  them  support  when  they  are  ac- 
cused, without  which  it  is  impossible  to  pass  through  the 

*  There  are  few  things  in  these  Memoirs  which  will  be  read  with  greater 
surprise  than  the  pages  relating  to  Queen  Hortense.  My  grandmother  lived  and 
died  in  the  conviction  that  in  speaking  thus  she  was  strictly  adhering  to  the 
truth.  The  contrary  opinion  has,  however,  prevailed  ;  and  it  has  been  confirmed 
by  the  conduct  of  her  son,  Napoleon  III.,  who  rendered  marked  honors  to  the 
Duke  de  Morny.  Very  likely  that,  as  often  happens,  all  was  true  according  to 
the  epoch — in  youth,  innocence,  and  sorrow ;  afterward,  consolation.  It  is  un- 
necessary to  say  that  on  this  point  I  preserve  the  exact  text  of  the  Memoirs,  as 
they  were  written  by  the  hand  of  their  author.  I  have  only  thought  it  right  to 
suppress  comments  of  an  opposite  nature  on  certain  ladies  of  the  Court.  The 
reader  will,  perhaps,  be  surprised  to  find  no  mention  in  these  portraits  of  the 
family  of  either  Queen  Caroline  or  Princess  Pauline  Bonaparte.  I  leave  out 
certain  matters  in  relation  to  them  which  have  no  bearing  on  the  Emperor  him- 
self. My  father  particularly  desired  that  the  text  of  his  mother's  Memoirs 
should  be  scrupulously  respected.  It  seemed  to  me,  however,  that  on  this  point 
I  might  fairly  depart  from  the  rules  of  strict  editing.  Habits,  tastes,  customs 
become  modified  by  time,  and  much  that  seemed  natural  to  a  clever  woman  in 
high  life  at  that  period  would  give  scandal  in  our  more  punctilious  day. 
6 


32      MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

world,  and  which  the  approbation  of  conscience  can  not  re- 
place. It  is  not  sufficient  to  lead  a  good  life  in  order  to 
appear  virtuous;  women  must  also  obey  those  rules  which 
society  has  made.  Mme.  Louis,  who  was  placed  in  circum- 
stances of  extreme  difficulty,  never  had  a  guide ;  she  under- 
stood her  mother,  and  could  not  venture  to  place  any  confi- 
dence in  her.  As  she  held  firmly  to  the  principles,  or  rather 
to  the  sentiments,  her  imagination  had  created,  she  was  at 
first  very  much  surprised  at  the  lapses  from  morality  in 
which  she  detected  the  women  by  whom  she  was  surrounded, 
and  was  still  more  surprised  when  she  found  that  these  faults 
were  not  always  the  result  of  love.  Her  marriage  cast  her 
on  the  mercy  of  the  most  tyrannical  of  husbands ;  she  be- 
came the  resigned  and  dejected  victim  of  ceaseless  and  un- 
remitting persecution,  and  sank  under  the  weight  of  her  sor- 
row. She  yielded  to  it  without  daring  to  complain,  and  it 
was  not  until  she  was  on  the  point  of  death  that  the  truth 
became  known.  I  knew  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  very  inti- 
mately, and  was  acquainted  with  all  the  secrets  of  her  do- 
mestic life.  I  have  always  believed  her  to  be  the  purest,  as 
she  was  the  most  unfortunate,  of  women. 

Her  only  consolation  was  in  her  tender  love  for  her 
brother ;  she  rejoiced  in  his  happiness,  his  success,  his  amia- 
ble temper.  How  many  times  have  I  heard  her  say,  "  I  only 
live  in  Eugene's  life ! " 

She  declined  to  marry  Kewbell's  son,  and  this  reasonable 
refusal  was  the  result  of  one  of  the  errors  of  her  imagination. 
From  her  earliest  youth  she  had  persuaded  herself  that  a 
woman,  if  she  would  be  virtuous  and  happy,  should  marry 
no  man  unless  she  loved  him  passionately.  Afterward,  when 
her  mother  wished  her  to  marry  the  Comte  de  Mun,  now  a 
peer  of  France,  she  again  refused  to  obey  her. 

M.  de  Mun  had  emigrated;  Mme.  Bonaparte  obtained 
permission  for  his  return.  He  came  back  to  a  considerable 
fortune,  and  asked  for  the  hand  of  Mile,  de  Beauharnais  in 
marriage.  Bonaparte,  then  First  Consul,  had  little  liking 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  33 

for  this  union.  Mme.  Bonaparte  would,  however,  have  had 
her  own  way  about  it,  only  for  the  obstinate  resistance  of 
her  daughter.  Some  one  said  before  her  that  M.  de  Mun 
had  been,  while  in  Germany,  in  love  with  Mme.  de  Stael. 
That  celebrated  woman  was  in  the  imagination  of  the  young 
girl  a  sort  of  monster,  whom  it  was  impossible  to  know  with- 
out scandal  and  without  taint.  M.  de  Mun  became  odious  to 
her,  and  thus  he  missed  a  great  match  and  the  terrible  down- 
fall that  was  to  ensue.  It  was  a  strange  accident  of  destiny, 
thus  to  have  missed  being  a  prince,  perhaps  a  king,  and  then 
dethroned. 

A  little  while  after,  Duroc,  then  one  of  the  Consul's 
aides-de-camp,  and  in  high  favor  with  him,  fell  in  love  with 
Hortense.  She  was  not  insensible  to  his  passion,  and  thought 
she  had  at  length  found  that  other  half  of  her  being  which 
she  sought  for.  Bonaparte  was  in  favor  of  the  marriage ; 
but  this  time  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  inflexible.  "  My  daugh- 
ter," she  said,  "  must  marry  a  gentleman  or  a  Bonaparte." 
Then  Louis  was  proposed.  He  had  no  liking  for  Hortense, 
he  detested  the  Beauharnais  family,  and  despised  his  sister-in- 
law  :  but,  as  he  was  taciturn,  he  was  supposed  to  be  amiable ; 
as  he  was  severe  in  his  judgments,  he  was  supposed  to  be  a 
good  man.  Mme.  Louis  has  since  told  me  that  when  she 
first  heard  of  this  arrangement  she  suffered  terribly.  Not 
only  was  she  forbidden  to  think  of  the  man  she  loved,  but 
she  was  also  to  be  given  to  another,  whom  she  instinctively 
distrusted.  However,  as  this  marriage  was  in  accordance 
with  her  mother's  wishes,  as  it  would  cement  the  family  ties, 
and  might  advance  her  brother's  interests,  she  yielded  her- 
self a  submissive  victim ;  nay,  she  did  even  more.  Her  im- 
agination was  full  of  the  duties  imposed  on  her ;  she  deter- 
mined to  make  every  sort  of  sacrifice  to  the  wishes  of  a  hus- 
band whom  she  had  the  misfortune  not  to  love.  Too  sincere 
and  too  reserved  to  feign  sentiments  she  did  not  feel,  she  was 
gentle,  submissive,  full  of  deference,  and  more  anxious  per- 
haps to  please  him  than  if  she  had  loved  him.  The  false  and 


34  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  BfiMUSAT. 

suspicious  disposition  of  Louis  Bonaparte  led  him  to  regard 
the  gentle  deference  of  his  wife  as  affectation  and  coquetry. 
"  She  practices  on  me,"  he  said,  "  to  deceive  me."  He  be- 
lieved that  her  conduct  was  dictated  by  the  counsels  of  her 
experienced  mother ;  he  repelled  the  efforts  she  made  to 
please  him,  and  treated  her  with  rude  contempt.  Nor  was 
this  all.  He  actually  divulged  to  Mme.  Louis  all  the  accu- 
sations which  had  been  brought  against  her  mother,  and, 
after  having  gone  as  far  in  that  direction  as  he  could  go, 
he  signified  his  pleasure  that  confidential  relations  between 
his  wife  and  her  mother  should  cease.  He  added,  "You 
are  now  a  Bonaparte.  Our  interests  should  be  yours ; 
those  of  your  own  family  no  longer  concern  you."  He  ac- 
companied this  cruel  notification  with  insulting  threats,  and 
a  coarse  expression  of  his  disdainful  opinion  of  women ;  he 
enumerated  the  precautions  he  meant  to  take  in  order,  as  he 
said,  to  escape  the  common  fate  of  all  husbands,  and  declared 
that  he  would  not  be  the  dupe  either  of  her  attempts  to  es- 
cape his  vigilance  or  of  the  tricks  of  pretended  docility  by 
which  she  might  hope  to  win  him  over. 

The  effect  of  such  a  declaration  upon  a  young  woman 
full  of  fancies  may  easily  be  conceived.  She  conducted 
herself,  however,  as  an  obedient  wife,  and  for  many  years 
only  her  sadness  and  her  failing  health  betrayed  her  suffer- 
ings. Her  husband,  who  was  hard  and  capricious,  and,  like 
all  the  Bonapartes,  selfish — worn  and  embittered  besides  by 
a  painful  disease  which  he  had  contracted  during  the  Egyp- 
tian campaign — set  no  limit  to  his  exactions.  As  he  was 
afraid  of  his  brother,  while  at  the  same  time  he  wanted  to 
keep  his  wife  away  from  Saint  Cloud,  he  ordered  her  to  say 
it  was  by  her  own  wish  that  she  seldom  went  thither,  and 
forbade  her  to  remain  there  a  single  night,  no  matter  how 
much  her  mother  might  press  her  to  do  so.  Mme.  Louis 
became  pregnant  very  soon  after  her  marriage.  The  Bona- 
partes and  Mme.  Murat,  who  were  displeased  at  this  mar- 
riage, because,  as  Joseph's  children  were  girls,  they  foresaw 


PORTRAITS  AND  ANECDOTES.  35 

that  a  son  of  Louis,  who  would  also  be  a  grandson  of  Mme. 
Bonaparte,  would  be  the  object  of  natural  interest,  spread 
the  outrageous  report  that  this  pregnancy  was  the  result  of 
an  intimacy  between  the  First  Consul  and  his  stepdaughter, 
with  the  connivance  of  Josephine  herself.  The  public  was 
quite  ready  to  believe  this  scandalous  falsehood,  and  Mme. 
Murat  repeated  it  to  Louis,  who,  whether  he  believed  it  or 
not,  made  it  a  pretext  for  every  kind  of  conjugal  tyranny. 
The  narrative  of  his  cruelty  to  his  wife  would  lead  me  too 
far  at  present ;  I  shall  return  to  the  subject  hereafter.  Her 
servants  were  employed  as  spies  upon  her ;  the  most  trifling 
notes  addressed  to  or  written  by  her  were  opened ;  every 
friendship  was  prohibited;  Louis  was  jealous  even  of  Eu- 
gene. Scenes  of  violence  were  frequent;  nothing  was 
spared  her.  Bonaparte  was  not  slow  to  perceive  this  state 
of  affairs,  but  he  was  grateful  to  Mme.  Louis  for  her  silence, 
which  put  him  at  his  ease,  and  exempted  him  from  the  ne- 
cessity of  interference.  He,  who  never  esteemed  women, 
always  professed  positive  veneration  for  Hortense,  and  the 
manner  in  which  he  spoke  of  and  acted  toward  her  is  a  for- 
mal contradiction  of  the  accusations  which  were  brought 
against  her.  In  her  presence  his  language  was  always  care- 
ful and  decent.  He  often  appealed  to  hef  to  arbitrate  be- 
tween his  wife  and  himself,  and  he  took  rebukes  from  her 
that  he  would  not  have  listened  to  patiently  from  any  one 
else.  "  Hortense,"  he  said  more  than  once,  "  forces  me  to 
believe  in  virtue." 


BOOK   I. 


CHAPTER  I. 

(1S02-18030) 

Family  affairs — My  first  evening  at  Saint  Cloud—  Grontfrtu  Moreau — M.  de  Re*musat 
is  made  Prefect,  and  I,  Lady  of  the  Palace — Habile  of  the  First  Consul  and  of 
Mme.  Bonaparte — M.  de  Talleyrand — The  iamily  of  the  First  Consul — Miles. 
Georges  and  Duchesnois— Mme.  Bonaparcevs  jealousy. 

NOTWITHSTANDING  the  date  of  the  year  in  which  I  under- 
take this  narrative,  I  shall  not  seek  to  excuse  the  motives 
which  led  my  husband  to  attach  himself  to  the  person  of 
Bonaparte,  but  shall  simply  explain  them.  In  political 
matters  justifications  are  worth  nothing.  Certain  persons, 
having  returned  to  France  only  three  years  ago,  or  having 
taken  no  part  in  public  affairs  before  that  epoch,  have  pro- 
nounced a  sort  of  anathema  against  those  among  our  fellow 
citizens  who  for  twenty  years  have  not  held  completely 
aloof  from  passing  events.  If  it  be  represented  to  them 
that  nobody  pretends  to  pronounce  whether  they  were  right 
or  wrong  to  indulge  in  their  long  sleep,  and  that  they  are 
merely  asked  to  remain  equally  neutral  on  a  similar  question, 
they  reject  such  a  proposition  with  all  the  strength  of  their 
present  position  of  vantage ;  they  deal  out  unsparing  and 
most  ungenerous  blame,  for  there  is  now  no  risk  in  under- 
taking the  duties  on  which  they  pride  themselves.  And 
yet,  when  a  revolution  is  in  progress,  who  can  flatter  himself 
that  he  has  always  adopted  the  right  course  ?  Who  among 
us  has  not  been  influenced  by  circumstances  ?  Who,  indeed, 


FAMILY  AFFAIRS.  37 

can  venture  to  throw  the  first  stone,  without  fear  lest  it  re- 
coil upon  himself  ?  Citizens  of  the  same  country,  all  more 
or  less  hurt  by  the  blows  they  have  given  and  received, 
ought  to  spare  each  other — they  are  more  closely  bound  to- 
gether than  they  think ;  and  when  a  Frenchman  mercilessly 
runs  down  another  Frenchman,  let  him  take  care — he  is  put- 
ting weapons  to  use  against  them  both  into  the  hands  of  the 
foreigner. 

"Not  the  least  evil  of  troubled  times  is  that  bitter  spirit  of 
criticism  which  produces  mistrust,  and  perhaps  contempt,  of 
what  is  called  public  opinion.  The  tumult  of  passion  enables 
every  one  to  defy  it.  Men  live  for  the  most  part  so  much 
outside  of  themselves,  that  they  have  few  opportunities  of  con- 
sulting their  conscience.  In  peaceful  times,  and  for  common 
ordinary  actions,  the  judgments  of  the  world  replace  it  well 
enough;  but  how  is  it  possible  to  submit  to  them,  when 
they  are  ready  to  deal  death  to  those  who  would  bow  to 
them  ?  It  is  safest,  then,  to  rely  on  that  conscience  which 
one  can  never  question  with  impunity.  Neither  my  hus- 
band's conscience  nor  my  own  reproaches  him  or  me.  The 
entire  loss  of  his  fortune,  the  experience  of  facts,  the  march 
of  events,  a  moderate  and  legitimate  desire  for  easier  circum- 
stances, led  M.  de  Remusat  to  seek  a  place  of  some  kind  in 
1802.  To  profit  by  the  repose  that  Bonaparte  had  given  to 
France,  and  to  rely  on  the  hopes  he  inspired,  was,  no  doubt, 
to  deceive  ourselves,  but  we  did  so  in  common  with  all  the 
rest  of  the  world. 

Unerring  prevision  is  given  to  very  few ;  and  if,  after 
his  second  marriage,  Bonaparte  had  maintained  peace,  and 
had  employed  that  portion  of  his  army  which  he  did  not 
disband  to  line  our  frontiers,  who  is  there  that  would  have 
dared  to  doubt  the  duration  of  his  power  and  the  strength 
of  his  rights  ?  At  that  time  both  his  power  and  his  rights 
seemed  to  have  acquired  the  force  of  legitimacy.  Bonaparte 
reigned  over  France  with  the  consent  of  France.  That  fact 
only  blind  hatred  or  foolish  pride  can  now  attempt  to  deny. 


38  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

He  reigned  for  our  misfortune  and  for  our  glory :  the  alli- 
ance of  those  two  words  is,  in  the  present  state  of  society, 
more  natural  than  it  seems,  at  least  when  military  glory  is  in 
question.  When  he  became  Consul,  people  breathed  freely. 
At  first  he  won  public  confidence ;  when,  afterward,  causes 
of  disquiet  arose,  the  country  was  already  committed  to  him. 
At  last  he  frightened  all  the  minds  who  had  believed  in  him, 
and  led  true  citizens  to  desire  his  fall,  even  at  the  risk  of  loss 
to  themselves.  This  is  the  history  of  M.  de  Kemusat  and 
myself ;  there  is  nothing  humiliating  in  it.  We  too  were  re- 
lieved and  confident  when  the  country  had  breathing  space, 
and  afterward  we  desired  its  deliverance  before  all  things. 

]$To  one  will  ever  know  what  I  suffered  during  the  later 
years  of  Bonaparte's  tyranny.  It  would  be  impossible  for 
me  to  describe  the  absolute  sincerity  with  which  I  longed 
for  the  return  of  the  King,  who  would,  as  I  firmly  believed, 
restore  peace  and  liberty  to  us.  I  foresaw  all  my  personal 
losses ;  and  M.  de  Remusat  foresaw  them  even  more  clearly 
than  I  did.  That  which  we  desired  would  ruin  the  fortune 
of  our  children.  But  the  loss  of  that  fortune,  which  we 
could  have  preserved  only  by  the  sacrifice  of  our  convictions, 
did  not  cost  us  a  regret.  The  ills  of  France  cried  too  loud 
then — shame  to  those  who  would  not  listen  to  them !  We 
served  Bonaparte,  we  even  loved  and  admired  him ;  and  it 
costs  me  nothing  to  make  this  avowal.  It  seems  to  me  it  is 
never  painful  to  avow  a  genuine  feeling.  I  am  not  at  all 
embarrassed  because  the  opinions  I  held  at  one  time  are  op- 
posed to  those  which  I  held  at  another ;  I  am  not  incapable 
of  being  mistaken.  I  know  what  I  have  felt,  and  I  have 
always  felt  it  sincerely ;  that  is  sufficient  for  God,  for  my 
son,  for  my  friends,  for  myself. 

My  present  task  is,  however,  a  difficult  one,  for  I  must 
go  back  in  search  of  a  number  of  impressions  which  were 
strong  and  vivid  when  I  received  them,  but  which  now,  like 
ruined  buildings  devastated  by  fire,  have  no  longer  any  con- 
nection one  with  another. 


MY  FIRST  EVENING  AT  SAINT  CLOUD.  39 

At  the  commencement  of  these  Memoirs  I  shall  pass  as 
briefly  as  possible  over  all  that  is  merely  personal  to  our- 
selves, up  to  the  time  of  our  introduction  to  the  Court  of 
Bonaparte ;  afterward  I  shall  perhaps  revert  to  still  earlier 
recollections.  A  woman  can  not  be  expected  to  relate  the 
political  life  of  Bonaparte.  If  he  was  so  reserved  with  those 
who  surrounded  him  that  persons  in  the  next  room  to  him 
were  often  ignorant  of  events  which  they  would  indeed  learn 
by  going  into  Paris,  but  could  only  comprehend  fully  by 
transporting  themselves  out  of  France,  how  much  more  im- 
possible would  it  have  been  for  me,  young  as  I  was  when  I 
made  my  entry  into  Saint  Cloud,  and  during  the  first  years 
that  I  lived  there,  to  do  more  than  seize  upon  isolated  facts 
at  long  intervals  of  time  ?  I  shall  record  what  I  saw,  or 
thought  I  saw,  and  will  do  my  best  to  make  my  narrative  as 
accurate  as  it  is  sincere. 

I  was  twenty-two  years  old  when  I  became  lady-in-waiting 
to  Mine.  Bonaparte.  I  was  married  at  sixteen  years  of  age, 
and  had  previously  been  perfectly  happy  in  a  quiet  life,  full 
of  home  affections.  The  convulsions  of  the  Revolution,  the 
execution  of  my  father  in  1794,  the  loss  of  our  fortune,  and 
my  mother's  love  of  retirement,  kept  me  out  of  the  gay 
world,  of  which  I  knew  and  desired  to  know  nothing.  I 
was  suddenly  taken  from  this  peaceful  solitude  to  act  a 
part  upon  the  stage  of  history ;  and,  without  having  passed 
through  the  intermediate  stage  of  society,  I  was  much 
affected  by  so  abrupt  a  transition,  and  my  character  has 
never  lost  the  impression  it  then  received.  I  dearly  loved 
my  husband  and  my  mother,  and  in  their  society  I  had  been 
accustomed  to  follow  the  impulses  of  my  feelings.  In  the 
Bonaparte  household  I  interested  myself  only  in  what  moved 
me  strongly.  I  never  in  my  life  could  occupy  myself  with 
the  trifles  of  what  is  called  the  great  world. 

My  mother  had  brought  me  up  most  carefully ;  my  edu- 
cation was  finished  under  the  superintendence  of  my  husband, 
who  was  a  highly  cultivated  man,  and  older  than  I  by  sixteen 


4:0  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

years.  I  was  naturally  grave,  a  tendency  which  in  women  is 
always  allied  to  enthusiasm.  Thus,  during  the  early  part  of 
my  residence  with  Mme.  Bonaparte  and  her  husband,  I  was 
full  of  the  sentiments  which  I  considered  due  to  them.  Their 
well-known  characters,  and  what  I  have  already  related  of 
their  domestic  life,  rendered  this  a  sure  preparation  for  many 
mistakes,  and  certainly  I  did  not  fail  to  make  them. 

I  have  already  mentioned  our  friendship  with  Mme. 
Bonaparte  during  the  expedition  to  Egypt.  After  that  we 
lost  sight  of  her,  until  the  time  when  my  mother,  having  ar- 
ranged a  marriage  for  my  sister  with  a  relative  of  ours,*  who 
had  returned  secretly,  but  was  still  included  in  the  list  of  the 
proscribed,  addressed  herself  to  Mme.  Bonaparte  in  order  to 
obtain  his  "  erasure."  f  The  matter  was  readily  arranged. 
Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  then  endeavoring,  with  much  tact 
and  kindness,  to  win  over  persons  of  a  certain  class  who  still 
held  aloof  from  her  husband,  begged  that  my  mother  and  M. 
de  Remusat  would  visit  her  one  evening,  in  order  to  return 
thanks  to  the  First  Consul.  It  was  not  possible  to  refuse, 
and  accordingly,  one  evening,  shortly  after  Bonaparte  had 
taken  up  his  abode  there,  we  went  to  the  Tuileries.  J  His 
wife  told  me  afterward  that  on  the  first  night  of  their  sojourn 
in  the  palace,  he  said  to  her,  laughing,  "  Come,  little  Creole, 
get  into  the  bed  of  your  masters." 

"We  found  Bonaparte  in  the  great  drawing-room  on  the 
ground  floor ;  he  was  seated  on  a  sofa.  Beside  him  I  saw 
General  Moreau,  with  whom  he  appeared  to  be  in  close  con- 
versation. At  that  period  they  were  still  trying  to  get  on 

*  M.  Charles  de  Ganay,  son  of  a  sister  of  M.  Charles  Gravier  de  Yergcnncs, 
and  first  cousin  of  the  author  of  these  Memoirs.  He  was  a  deputy  and  colonel 
of  the  Royal  Guard  under  the  Restoration.  I  do  not  know  what  prevented  his 
marriage  with  Mile.  Alix  de  Vergennes,  who  shortly  after  married  General  Nan- 
souty.  The  friendship  between  the  two  branches  of  the  family  was  not  disturbed 
by  this  affair,  and  it  is  happily  perpetuated. — P.  R. 

f  See  Appendix. 

t  It  was  on  the  19th  of  February,  1800  (30th  Pluviose,  year  8),  that  the  First 
Consul  took  possession  of  the  Tuileries. — P.  B. 


GENERAL  MOREAU.  41 

together.  A  very  amiable  speech  of  Bonaparte's,  of  a  grace- 
ful kind  unusual  with  him,  was  much  talked  of.  He  had 
had  a  superb  pair  of  pistols  made,  with  the  names  of  all 
Moreau's  battles  engraved  on  the  handles  in  gold  letters. 
"  You  must  excuse  their  not  being  more  richly  ornamented," 
said  Bonaparte,  presenting  them  to  him ;  "  the  names  of  your 
victories  took  up  all  the  space." 

There  were  in  the  drawing-room  ministers,  generals,  and 
ladies.  Among  the  latter,  almost  all  young  and  pretty,  were 
Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte ;  *  Mme.  Murat,  who  was  recently 
married,  and  who  struck  me  as  very  charming ;  and  Mme. 
Marat,  who  was  paying  her  wedding  visit,  and  was  at  that 
time  perfectly  beautiful.  Mme.  Bonaparte  received  her 
company  with  perfect  grace ;  she  was  dressed  tastefully  in  a 
revived  antique  style  which  was  the  fashion  of  the  day. 
Artists  had  at  that  time  a  good  deal  of  influence  on  the  cus- 
toms of  society. 

Bonaparte  rose  when  we  courtesied  to  him,  and  after  a 
few  vague  words  reseated  himself,  and  took  no  more  notice 
of  the  ladies  who  were  in  the  room.  I  confess  that,  on  this 
occasion,  I  was  less  occupied  with  him  than  with  the  luxury, 
the  elegance,  and  the  magnificence  on  which  my  eyes  rested 
for  the  first  time. 

From  that  time  forth  we  made  occasional  visits  to  the 
Tuileries ;  and  after  a  while  it  was  suggested  to  us,  and  we 
took  to  the  idea,  that  M.  de  Remusat  might  fill  some  post, 
which  would  restore  us  to  the  comfort  of  which  the  loss  of 
our  fortune  had  deprived  us.  M.  de  Remusat,  having  been 
a  magistrate  before  the  Revolution,  would  have  preferred  oc- 
cupation of  a  legal  character.  He  would  not  grieve  me  by 
separating  me  from  my  mother  and  taking  me  away  from 
Paris,  and  therefore  he  was  disposed  to  ask  for  a  place  in  the 
Council  of  State,  and  to  avoid  prefectures.  But  then  we 
really  knew  nothing  of  the  structure  and  composition  of  the 

*  Hortense  de  Beauharnais  had  married  Louis  Bonaparte  on  the  4th  of  Janu- 
ary, 1802. 


42  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

Government.  My  mother  had  mentioned  our  position  to 
Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  had  taken  a  liking  to  me,  and  was 
also  pleased  with  my  husband's  manners,  and  it  occurred  to 
her  that  she  might  place  us  near  herself.  Just  at  this  time 
my  sister,  who  had  not  married  the  cousin  whom  I  have  men- 
tioned, married  M.  de  Nansouty,  a  general  of  brigade,  the 
nephew  of  Mme.  de  Montesson,  and  a  man  very  much  es- 
teemed in  the  army  and  in  society.  This  marriage  strength- 
ened our  connection  with  the  Consular  Government,  and  a 
month  afterward  Mme.  Bonaparte  told  my  mother  that  she 
hoped  before  long  M.  de  Remusat  would  be  made  a  Prefect 
of  the  Palace.  I  will  pass  over  in  silence  the  sentiments 
with  which  this  news  was  received  in  the  family.  For  my 
own  part,  I  was  exceedingly  frightened.  M.  de  Remusat 
was  resigned  rather  than  pleased ;  and,  as  he  is  a  particularly 
conscientious  man,  he  applied  himself  to  all  the  minute  de- 
tails of  his  new  occupation  immediately  after  his  nomination, 
which  soon  followed.  Shortly  afterward  I  received  the  fol- 
lowing letter  from  General  Duroc,  Governor  of  the  Palace : 

"  MADAME  :  The  First  Consul  has  nominated  you  to  at- 
tend upon  Mme.  Bonaparte,  in  doing  the  honors  of  the  pal- 
ace. His  personal  knowledge  of  your  character  and  of  your 
principles  satisfies  him  that  you  will  acquit  yourself  of  this 
duty  with  the  politeness  which  distinguishes  French  ladies, 
and  with  dignity  such  as  the  Government  requires.  I  am 
happy  to  have  been  made  the  medium  of  announcing  to  you 
this  mark  of  his  esteem  and  confidence. 

"  Receive,  madame,  my  respectful  homage." 

Thus  did  we  find  ourselves  installed  at  this  singular  Court. 
Although  Bonaparte  would  have  been  angry  if  any  one  had 
seemed  to  doubt  the  sincerity  of  his  utterances,  which  were 
at  this  period  entirely  republican,  he  introduced  some  novel- 
ty into  his  manner  of  life  every  day,  which  tended  to  give 
the  place  of  his  abode  more  and  more  resemblance  to  the 


HABITS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  4.3 

palace  of  a  sovereign.  He  liked  display,  provided  it  did  not 
interfere  with  his  own  particular  habits ;  therefore  he  laid 
the  weight  of  ceremonial  on  those  who  surrounded  him.  He 
believed  also  that  the  French  are  attracted  by  the  glitter  of 
external  pomp.  He  was  very  simple  in  his  own  attire,  but 
he  required  his  officers  to  wear  magnificent  uniforms.  He 
had  already  established  a  marked  distance  between  himself 
and  the  two  other  Consuls ;  and  just  as,  although  he  used  the 
preamble,  "By  order  of  the  Consuls,"  etc.,  in  the  acts  of 
government,  his  own  signature  only  was  placed  at  the  end, 
so  he  held  his  court  alone,  either  at  the  Tuileries  or  at  Saint 
Cloud ;  he  received  the  ambassadors  with  the  ceremonial  used 
by  kings,  and  always  appeared  in  public  attended  by  a  nu- 
merous guard,  while  he  allowed  his  colleagues  only  two 
grenadiers  before  their  carriages;  and  finally  he  began  to 
give  his  wife  rank  in  the  state. 

At  first  we  found  ourselves  in  a  somewhat  difficult  posi- 
tion, which,  nevertheless,  had  its  advantages.  Military  glory 
and  the  rights  it  confers  were  all-in-all  to  the  generals  and 
aides-de-camp  who  surrounded  Bonaparte.  They  seemed  to 
think  that  every  distinction  belonged  exclusively  to  them. 
The  Consul,  however,  who  liked  conquest  of  all  kinds,  and 
whose  design  was  to  gain  over  to  himself  all  classes  of  society, 
made  his  Court  pleasant  to  persons  belonging  to  other  profes- 
sions. Besides  this,  M.  de  Remusat,  who  was  a  man  of  in- 
tellect, of  remarkable  learning,  and  superior  to  his  colleagues 
in  conversational  powers,  was  soon  distinguished  by  his  mas- 
ter, who  was  quick  at  discovering  qualities  which  might  be 
useful  to  himself.  Bonaparte  was  glad  that  persons  in  his 
service  should  know,  for  his  purposes,  things  of  which  he 
was  ignorant.  He  found  that  my  husband  knew  all  about 
certain  customs  which  he  wanted  to  reestablish,  and  was  a 
safe  authority  on  matters  of  etiquette  and  the  habits  of  good 
society.  He  briefly  indicated  his  projects,  was  at  once  un- 
derstood, and  as  promptly  obeyed.  This  unusual  manner  of 
pleasing  him  at  first  gave  some  offense  to  the  military  men. 


44  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

They  foresaw  that  they  would  no  longer  be  the  only  persons 
in  favor,  and  that  they  would  be  required  to  alter  the  rough 
manners  which  did  well  enough  for  camps  and  fields  of  bat- 
tle ;  therefore  our  presence  displeased  them.  For  my  own 
part,  although  I  was  so  young,  I  had  more  ease  of  manner 
than  their  wives.  Most  of  my  companions  were  ignorant  of 
the  world,  timid  and  silent,  and  they  were  either  shy  or 
frightened  in  the  presence  of  the  First  Consul.  As  for  me, 
I  was,  as  I  have  already  said,  very  quick  and  lively,  easily 
moved  by  novelty,  fond  of  intellectual  pleasures,  interested 
in  observing  so  many  persons,  all  unknown  to  me ;  and  I 
found  favor  with  my  new  sovereign,  because,  as  I  have  said 
elsewhere,  I  took  pleasure  in  listening  to  him.  And  then, 
Mme.  Bonaparte  liked  me,  because  she  herself  had  chosen 
me ;  she  was  pleased  that  she  had  been  able  to  attach  a  per- 
son of  good  family  to  herself,  and  that  through  the  medium 
of  my  mother,  whom  she  respected  highly.  She  trusted  me, 
and  I  was  attached  to  her,  so  that  before  long  she  confided  all 
her  secrets  to  me,  and  I  received  them  with  discretion.  Al- 
though I  might  have  been  her  daughter,*  I  was  often  able  to 
give  her  good  advice,  because  the  habits  of  a  secluded  and 
strict  life  make  one  take  a  serious  view  of  things.  My  hus- 
band and  I  were  soon  placed  in  so  prominent  a  position  that 
we  had  to  secure  forgiveness  for  it.  We  obtained  that  posi- 
tion almost  entirely  by  preserving  our  simple  ways,  by  keep- 
ing within  the  bounds  of  politeness,  and  by  avoiding  every- 
thing which  might  lead  to  the  suspicion  that  we  wanted  to 
trade  on  the  favor  we  were  in. 

M.  de  Kemusat  lived  in  a  simple  and  kindly  fashion  in 
the  midst  of  this  warlike  Court.  As  for  me,  I  was  fortu- 
nate enough  to  hold  my  own  without  offense,  and  I  put  for- 
ward no  pretension  distasteful  to  other  women.  The  greater 

*  The  Empress  Josephine  was  born  at  Martinique  in  1763.  She  married  M. 
de  Beauharnais  in  1779,  and  separated  from  him  in  1783.  After  the  death  of 
her  husband  she  was  married  (civilly)  to  General  Bonaparte,  on  the  9th  of 
March,  1796.  She  died  on  the  29th  of  May,  1814.— P.  K. 


HABITS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  45 

number  of  my  companions  were  much  handsomer  than  I — 
some  of  them  were  very  beautiful ;  and  they  were  all  su- 
perbly dressed.  My  face,  which  had  no  beauty  but  that  of 
youth,  and  the  habitual  simplicity  of  my  attire,  satisfied 
them  that  in  several  ways  they  were  superior  to  me ;  and  it 
soon  seemed  as  if  we  had  made  a  tacit  compact  that  they 
should  charm  the  eyes  of  the  First  Consul  when  we  were  in 
his  presence,  and  that  I  should  endeavor,  as  far  as  lay  in  my 
power,  to  interest  his  mind.  As  I  have  already  said,  to  do 
that  one  had  only  to  be  a  good  listener. 

Political  ideas  rarely  enter  into  the  head  of  a  woman  at 
twenty-two.  I  was  at  that  time  quite  without  any  kind  of 
party  spirit.  I  never  reasoned  on  the  greater  or  less  right 
which  Bonaparte  had  to  the  power  of  which  every  one  de- 
clared that  he  made  a  good  use.  M.  de  Remusat,  who  be- 
lieved in  him,  as  did  nearly  the  whole  of  France,  was  full  of 
the  hopes  which  at  that  time  seemed  to  be  well  founded. 
All  classes,  outraged  and  disgusted  by  the  horrors  of  the 
Revolution,  and  grateful  to  the  Consular  Government  which 
preserved  us  from  the  Jacobite  reaction,  looked  upon  its 
coming  into  power  as  a  new  era  for  the  country.  The  trials 
of  liberty  that  had  been  made  over  and  over  again  had  in- 
spired a  very  natural,  though  not  very  reasonable,  aversion 
to  it ;  for,  in  truth,  liberty  always  disappeared  when  its  name 
was  used  merely  to  vary  successive  species  of  tyranny.  Gen- 
erally speaking,  nobody  in  France  wanted  anything  except 
quiet,  the  right  to  free  exercise  of  the  intellect,  the  cultiva- 
tion of  private  virtues,  and  the  reparation  by  degrees  of 
those  losses  of  fortune  which  were  common  to  all.  When  I 
remember  all  the  dreams  which  I  cherished  at  that  time,  the 
recollection  makes  me  sick  at  heart.  I  regret  those  fancies, 
as  one  regrets  the  bright  thoughts  of  ihe  springtime  of  life 
— of  that  time  when,  to  use  a  simile  familiar  to  Bonaparte 
himself,  one  looks  at  all  things  through  a  gilded  veil  which 
makes  them  bright  and  sparkling.  " Little  by  little"  said 
he,  "  this  veil  thickens  as  we  advance  in  life,  until  all  is 


46  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

nearly  Hack."  Alas !  lie  himself  soon  stained  with  blood 
that  gilded  veil  through  which  France  had  gladly  contem- 
plated him. 

It  was  in  the  autumn  of  1802  that  I  established  myself 
for  the  first  time  at  Saint  Cloud,  where  the  First  Consul 
then  was.  There  were  four  ladies,  and  we  each  passed  a 
week  in  succession  in  attendance  on  Mme.  Bonaparte.  The 
service,  as  it  was  called,  of  the  prefects  of  the  palace,  of  the 
generals  of  the  guard,  and  of  the  aides-de-camp,  was  con- 
ducted in  the  same  way.  Duroc,  the  Governor  of  the  Pal- 
ace, lived  at  Saint  Cloud  ;  he  kept  the  household  in  perfect 
order  ;  we  dined  with  him.  The  First  Consul  took  his  meals 
alone  with  his  wife.  Twice  a  week  he  invited  some  mem- 
bers of  the  Government ;  once  a  month  he  gave  a  great  din- 
ner to  a  hundred  guests  at  the  Tuileries,  in  the  Gallery  of 
Diana ;  after  these  dinners  he  received  every  one  who  held 
an  important  post  or  rank,  either  military  or  civil,  and  also 
foreigners  of  note.  During  the  winter  of  1803  we  were 
still  at  peace  with  England.  A  great  number  of  English 
people  came  to  Paris,  and  as  we  were  not  accustomed  to  see- 
ing them,  they  excited  great  curiosity. 

At  these  brilliant  receptions  there  was  a  great  display  of 
luxury.  Bonaparte  liked  women  to  dress  well,  and,  either 
from  policy  or  from  taste,  he  encouraged  his  wife  and  sisters 
to  do  so.  Mme.  Bonaparte  and  Mmes.  Bacciochi  and  Murat 
(Mme.  Leclerc,  afterward  Princess  Pauline,  was  at  Saint 
Domingo  in  1802)  were  always  magnificently  attired.  Cos- 
tumes were  given  to  the  different  corps ;  the  uniforms  were 
rich ;  and  this  pomp,  coming  as  it  did  after  a  period  in  which 
the  affectation  of  squalor  had  been  combined  with  that  of 
extravagant  civisme,  seemed  to  be  an  additional  guarantee 
against  the .  return  of  that  fatal  regime  which  was  still  re- 
membered with  dread. 

Bonaparte's  costume  at  this  period  is  worthy  of  record. 
On  ordinary  days  he  wore  one  of  the  uniforms  of  his  guard ; 
but  he  had  decreed,  for  himself  and  his  two  colleagues,  that 


HABITS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  tf 

on  all  occasions  of  grand  ceremonial  each  should  wear  a  red 
coat,  made  in  winter  in  velvet,  in  summer  of  some  other 
material,  and  embroidered  in  gold.  The  two  Consuls,  Cam- 
baceres  and  Lebrun,  elderly,  powdered,  and  well  set  up, 
wore  this  gorgeous  coat,  with  lace,  ruffles,  and  a  sword,  after 
the  old  fashion  of  full  dress ;  but  Bonaparte,  who  detested 
all  such  adornments,  got  rid  of  them  as  much  as  possible. 
His  hair  was  cut  short,  smoothed  down,  and  generally  ill 
arranged.  With  his  crimson-and-gold  coat  he  would  wear  a 
black  cravat,  a  lace  frill  to  his  shirt,  but  no  sleeve  ruffles. 
Sometimes  he  wore  a  white  vest  embroidered  in  silver,  but 
more  frequently  his  uniform  waistcoat,  his  uniform  sword, 
breeches,  silk  stockings,  and  boots.  This  extraordinary  cos- 
tume and  his  small  stature  gave  him  the  oddest  possible 
appearance,  which,  however,  no  one  ventured  to  ridicule. 
When  he  became  Emperor,  he  wore  a  richly  laced  coat,  with 
a  short  cloak  and  a  plumed  hat ;  and  this  costume  became 
him  very  well.  He  also  wore  a  magnificent  collar  of  the 
Order  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  in  diamonds,  on  state  occa- 
sions; but  on  ordinary  occasions  he  wore  only  the  silver 
cross. 

On  the  eve  of  his  coronation,  the  marshals  he  had  newly 
created  a  few  months  before  came,  to  pay  him  a  visit,  all 
gorgeously  arrayed.  The  splendor  of  their  costume,  in 
k  contrast  with  his  simple  uniform,  made  him  smile.  I  was 
standing  at  a  little  distance  from  him,  and  as  he  saw  that  I 
smiled  also,  he  said  to  me,  in  a  low  tone,  "It is  not  every  one 
who  has  the  right  to  be  plainly  dressed."  Presently  the 
marshals  of  the  army  began  disputing  among  themselves 
about  the  great  question  of  precedence.  Their  pretensions 
were  very  well  founded,  and  each  enumerated  his  victories. 
Bonaparte,  while  listening  to  them,  again  glanced  at  me.  "  I 
think,"  said  I,  "  you  must  have  stamped  your  foot  on  France, 
and  said,  <  Let  all  the  vanities  arise  from  the  soil.' "  "  That 
is  true,"  he  replied ;  "but  it  is  fortunate  that  the  French  are 
to  be  ruled  through  their  vanity." 


48  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

During  the  first  months  of  my  sojourn  at  Saint  Cloud  in 
the  winter,  and  at  Paris,  my  life  was  very  pleasant.  In  the 
morning  at  eight  o'clock  Bonaparte  left  his  wife's  room  and 
Went  to  his  study.  When  we  were  in  Paris  he  again  went 
down  to  her  apartments  to  breakfast;  at  Saint  Cloud  he 
breakfasted  alone,  generally  on  the  terrace.  While  at  break- 
fast he  received  artists  and  actors,  and  talked  to  them  freely 
and  pleasantly.  Afterward  he  devoted  himself  to  public 
affairs  until  six  o'clock.  Mme.  Bonaparte  remained  at  home 
during  the  morning,  receiving  an  immense  number  of  visit- 
ors, chiefly  women.  Among  these  would  be  some  whose 
husbands  belonged  to  the  Government,  and  some  (these  were 
called  de  Vcvncien  regime)  who  did  not  wish  to  have,  or  to 
appear  to  have,  relations  with  the  First  Consul,  but  who 
solicited,  through  his  wife,  "  erasures  "  or  restitutions.  Mme. 
Bonaparte  received  them  all  with  perfect  grace.  She  prom- 
ised everything,  and  sent  every  one  away  well  pleased.  The 
petitions  were  put  aside  and  lost  sometimes,  but  then  they 
brought  fresh  ones,  and  she  seemed  never  tired  of  listening.  * 

*  My  father,  born  in  1797,  was  very  young  at  this  time.  He  had,  however, 
a  distinct  recollection  of  a  visit  which  he  paid  to  the  palace  with  his  mother, 
and  he  writes  in  a  note  respecting  it : 

"  On  Sunday  I  was  taken  to  the  Tuileries,  and  allowed  to  look  on  the  review  of 
the  troops  in  the  Carrousel  from  the  ladies'-maids'  window.  A  large  drawing 
by  Isabey,  which  has  been  engraved,  exactly  reproduces  all  that  was  interesting 
in  that  spectacle.  One  day,  after  the  parade,  my  mother  came  for  me  (I  think  she 
had  accompanied  Mme.  Bonaparte  into  the  court  of  the  Tuileries),  and  took  me 
up  a  staircase  full  of  soldiers,  at  whom  I  stared  hard.  One  of  them,  who  was 
coming  down,  spoke  to  her ;  he  wore  an  infantry  uniform.  '  Who  is  that  ? '  I 
asked,  when  he  had  passed.  He  was  Louis  Bonaparte.  Then  I  saw  a  young 
man  going  up  stairs,  in  the  well-known  uniform  of  the  Guides.  His  name  I  did 
not  need  to  ask.  Children  in  those  days  knew  the  insignia  of  every  rank  and 
corps  in  the  army,  and  who  did  not  know  that  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  was 
Colonel  of  the  Guides  ?  At  last  we  reached  Mme.  Bonaparte's  drawing-room. 
At  first  there  was  no  one  there  but  herself,  one  or  two  ladies,  and  my  father 
wearing  his  red  coat  embroidered  in  silver.  I  was  probably  kissed — perhaps 
they  thought  me  grown ;  then  no  one  noticed  me  any  further.  Soon  an  officer 
of  the  Consul's  guard  entered.  He  was  short,  thin,  and  carried  himself  badly, 
or  at  least  carelessly.  I  was  sufficiently  drilled  in  etiquette  to  observe  that  he 


HABITS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  49 

We  dined  at  six  in  Paris ;  at  Saint  Cloud  we  went  out  to 
drive  at  that  hour — the  Consul  alone  in  a  caleche  with  his 
wife,  we  in  other  carriages.  Bonaparte's  brother  and  sisters 
and  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  might  come  to  dine  with  him 
whenever  they  wished  to  do  so.  Sometimes  Mme.  Louis 
came ;  but  she  never  slept  at  Saint  Cloud.  The  jealousy  of 
Louis  Bonaparte,  and  his  extreme  suspicion,  had  already 
made  her  shy  and  melancholy.  Once  or  twice  a  week  the 
little  Napoleon  (who  afterward  died  in  Holland)  was  sent  to 
Saint  Cloud.  Bonaparte  seemed  to  love  that  child ;  he  built 
hopes  for  the  future  upon  him.  Perhaps  it  was  only  on  ac- 
count of  those  hopes  that  he  noticed  him ;  for  M.  de  Talley- 
rand has  told  me  that,  when  the  news  of  his  nephew's  death 
reached  Berlin,  Bonaparte,  who  was  about  to  appear  in  pub- 
lic, was  so  little  affected  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  said,  "You 
forget  that  a  death  has  occurred  in  your  family,  and  that  you 
ought  to  look  serious."  "  I  do  not  amuse  myself,"  replied 
Bonaparte,  "  by  thinking  of  dead  people." 

It  would  be  curious  to  compare  this  frank  utterance  with 
the  fine  speech  of  M.  de  Fontanes,  who,  having  to  deliver  an 
address  upon  the  depositing  of  the  Prussian  flags  in  great 
pomp  at  the  Invalides,  dwelt  pathetically  upon  the  majestic 
grief  of  a  conqueror  who  turned  from  the  splendor  of  his  vic- 
tories to  shed  tears  over  the  death  of  a  child.* 

moved  about  a  great  deal,  and  made  rather  free.  Among  other  things,  I  was 
surprised  to  see  him  sit  on  the  arm  of  a  chair.  From  thence  he  spoke,  across  a 
considerable  distance,  to  my  mother.  We  were  in  front  of  him,  and  I  remarked 
his  thin,  almost  wan  face,  with  its  brown  and  yellowish  tints.  We  drew  near 
him  while  he  spoke.  When  I  was  within  his  reach,  he  noticed  me ;  he  took  me  by 
my  two  ears  and  pulled  them  rather  roughly.  He  hurt  me,  and,  had  I  not  been 
in  a  palace,  I  should  have  cried.  Then,  turning  to  my  father,  *  Is  .he  learning 
mathematics  ? '  he  said.  Soon  I  was  taken  away.  '  Who  is  that  soldier  ? '  I 
asked  my  mother.  'That  soldier  is  the  First  Consul.' " 

Such  was  my  father's  introduction  to  the  life  of  courts.  He  saw  the  Em- 
peror only  once  more,  and  under  similar  circumstances. — P.  R. 

*  The  following  letters  were  written  by  the  Emperor  on  the  occasion  of  the 
death  of  this  child,  in  May,  1807.  He  was  at  Finkestein,  and  he  wrote  to  the 
Empress  Josephine : 


50  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

After  the  Consul  had  dined,  we  were  told  we  might  go 
upstairs  again.  The  conversation  was  prolonged,  according 
as  he  was  in  a  good  or  a  bad  humor.  He  would  go  away  after 
a  while,  and  in  general  we  did  not  see  him  again.  He  re- 
turned to  work,  gave  some  particular  audience  or  received 
one  of  the  ministers,  and  retired  early.  Mme.  Bonaparte 
played  at  cards  in  the  evening.  Between  ten  and  eleven 
o'clock  she  would  be  told,  "  Madame,  the  First  Consul  has 
gone  to  his  room,"  and  then  she  would  dismiss  us  for  the 
night. 

She  and  every  one  about  her  were  very  reserved  respect- 
ing public  affairs.  Duroc,  Maret  (then  Secretary  of  State), 
and  the  private  secretaries  were  all  impenetrable.  Most  of 
the  soldiers,  to  avoid  talking,  as  I  believe,  abstained  from 
thinking ;  in  that  kind  of  life  there  was  not  much  wear  and 
tear  of  the  mind. 

On  my  arrival  at  Court,  I  was  quite  ignorant  of  the  more 
or  less  dread  that  Bonaparte  inspired  in  those  who  had  known 
him  for  some  time,  and  I  was  less  embarrassed  in  his  pres- 
ence than  the  others ;  and  I  did  not  think  myself  bound  to 
adopt  the  system  of  monosyllables  religiously,  and  perhaps 
prudently,  adopted  by  all  the  household.  This,  however,  ex- 

"I  know  how  much  the  death  of  poor  Napoleon  grieves  you;  you  can 
comprehend  the  pain  I  feel.  I  wish  I  were  near  you,  that  you  might  be  mod- 
erate and  reasonable  in  your  grief.  You  have  had  the  happiness  never  to  lose  a 
child ;  but  that  loss  is  one  of  the  conditions  and  the  penalties  attached  to  our 
miserable  human  destiny.  Let  me  hear  that  you  have  been  reasonable,  and  that 
you  are  well,  if  you  would  not  increase  my  trouble.  Adieu,  my  love." 

Some  days  later  (the  20th  of  May)  he  wrote  to  the  Queen  of  Holland  :  "  My 
daughter,  all  that  I  hear  from  the  Hague  proves  to  me  that  you  are  not  reason- 
ble.  However  legitimate  may  be  your  grief,  it  ought  to  have  limits.  Do  not 
ruin  your  health.  Take  some  recreation,  and  learn  that  life  is  strewn  with  so 
many  trials,  and  may  be  the  cause  of  so  many  evils,  that  death  is  not  the  worst 
one  of  all."  He  wrote  the  same  day  to  M.  Fouche :  "  I  have  felt  the  loss  of  lit- 
tle Napoleon  very  much.  I  could  have  wished  that  his  father  and  mother  had 
received  from  nature  as  much  courage  as  I  have  to  endure  all  the  evils  of  life. 
But  they  are  young,  and  they  have  reflected  less  on  the  fragility  of  all  things 
here  below."— P.  R. 


HABITS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  51 

posed  me  to  ridicule  in  a  way  of  which  I  was  unconscious  at 
first,  which  afterward  amused  me,  but  which  in  the  end  I 
had  to  avoid. 

One  evening  Bonaparte  was  praising  the  ability  of  the 
elder  M.  Portalis,  who  was  then  working  at  the  Civil  Code, 
and  M.  de  Eemusat  said  M.  Portalis  had  profited  by  the  study 
of  Montesquieu  in  particular,  adding  that  he  had  read  and 
learned  Montesquieu  as  one  learns  the  catechism.  Bonaparte, 
turning  to  one  of  my  companions,  said  to  her,  laughing,  "  I 
would  bet  something  that  you  do  not  know  what  this  Mon- 
tesquieu is."  "Pardon  me,"  she  replied,  "everybody  has 
read  <  Le  Temple  de  Guide.' "  At  thifr  Bonaparte  went  off 
into  a  fit  of  laughter,  and  I  could  not  help  smiling.  He 
looked  at  me  and  said,  "And  you,  madame?"  I  replied 
simply  that  I  was  not  acquainted  with  "Le  Temple  de 
Guide,"  but  had  read  "  Considerations  sur  les  Eomains,"  and 
that  I  thought  neither  the  one  nor  the  other  work  was  the 
catechism  to  which  M.  de  Remusat  alluded.  "  Diable !  " 
said  Bonaparte,  "  you  are  a  savante  !  "  This  epithet  discon- 
certed me,  for  I  felt  that  it  would  stick.  A  minute  after, 
Mme.  Bonaparte  began  to  talk  of  a  tragedy  (I  do  not  know 
what  it  was)  which  was  then  being  performed.  On  this  the 
First  Consul  passed  the  living  authors  in  review,  and  spoke 
of  Ducis,  whose  style  he  did  not  admire.  He  deplored  the 
mediocrity  of  our  tragic  poets,  ajid  said  that,  above  every- 
thing in  the  world,  he  should  like  to  recompense  the  author 
of  a  fine  tragedy.  I  ventured  to  say  that  Ducis  had  spoilt 
the  "Othello"  of  Shakespeare.  This  long  English  name 
coming  from  my  lips  produced  a  sensation  among  our  silent 
and  attentive  audience  in  epaulettes.  Bonaparte  did  not  al- 
together like  anything  English  being  praised.  We  argued 
the  point  awhile.  All  I  said  was  very  commonplace ;  but  I 
had  named  Shakespeare,  I  had  held  my  own  against  the 
Consul,  I  had  praised  an  English  author.  "What  audacity ! 
what  a  prodigy  of  erudition !  I  was  obliged  to  keep  silence 
for  several  days  after,  or  at  least  only  to  take  part  in  idle 


52  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE  REMUS  AT. 

talk,  in  order  to  efface  the  effect  of  my  unlucky  and  easily 
gained  reputation  for  cleverness. 

When  I  left  the  palace  and  went  back  to  my  mother's 
house,  I  associated  there  with  many  amiable  women  and  dis- 
tinguished men,  whose  conversation  was  most  interesting; 
and  I  smiled  to  myself  at  the  difference  between  their  soci- 
ety and  that  of  Bonaparte's  Court. 

One  good  effect  of  our  almost  habitual  silence  was,  that 
it  kept  us  from  gossip.  The  women  had  no  chance  of  in- 
dulging in  coquetry  ;  the  men  were  incessantly  occupied  in 
their  duties ;  and  Bonaparte,  who  did  not  yet  venture  to  in- 
dulge all  his  fancies,  and  who  felt  that  the  appearance  of 
regularity  would  be  useful  to  him,  lived  in  a  way  which  de- 
ceived me  as  to  his  morality.  He  appeared  to  love  his  wife 
very  much  ;  she  seemed  to  be  all  in  all  to  him.  Neverthe- 
less, I  discovered  ere  long  that  she  had  troubles  of  a  nature 
which  surprised  me.  She  was  of  an  exceedingly  jealous  dis- 
position. It  was  a  very  great  misfortune  for  her  that  she 
had  no  children  by  her  second  husband  ;  he  sometimes  ex- 
pressed his  annoyance,  and  then  she  trembled  for  her  future. 
The  family  of  the  First  Consul,  who  were  always  bitter 
against  the  Beauharnais,  made  the  most  of  this  misfortune. 
From  these  causes  quarrels  arose.  Sometimes  I  found  Mme. 
Bonaparte  in  tears,  and  then  she  would  complain  bitterly  of 
her  brothers-in-law,  of  Mme.  Murat,  and  of  Murat,  who  kept 
up  their  own  influence  by  exciting  the  Consul  to  passing 
fancies,  and  promoting  his  secret  intrigues.  I  begged  her 
to  keep  quiet.  I  could  see  that  if  Bonaparte  loved  his  wife, 
it  was  because  her  habitual  gentleness  gave  him  repose,  and 
that  she  would  lose  her  power  if  she  troubled  or  disturbed 
him.  However,  during  my  first  years  at  Court,  the  slight 
differences  which  arose  between  them  always  ended  in  satis- 
factory explanations  and  in  redoubled  tenderness. 

After  1802  I  never  saw  General  Moreau  at  Bonaparte's 
Court ;  they  were  already  estranged.  Moreau's  mother-in- 
law  and  wife  were  schemers,  and  Bonaparte  could  not  endure 


HABITS   OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  53 

a  spirit  of  intrigue  in  women.  Moreover,  on  one  occasion 
the  mother  of  Mme.  Moreau,  being  at  Malmaison,  had  ven- 
tured to  jest  about  the  suspected  scandalous  intimacy  between 
Bonaparte  and  his  young  sister  Caroline,  then  newly  mar- 
ried. The  Consul  had  not  forgiven  these  remarks,  for  which 
he  had  severely  censured  both  the  mother  and  the  daughter. 
Moreau  complained,  and  was  sharply  questioned  about  his 
own  attitude.  He  lived  in  retirement,  among  people  who 
kept  him  in  a  state  of  constant  irritation  ;  and  Murat,  who 
was  the  chief  of  an  active  secret  police,  spied  out  causes  of 
offense  which  were  wholly  unimportant,  and  continually  car- 
ried malicious  reports  to  the  Tuileries.  This  multiplication 
of  the  police  was  one  of  the  evils  of  Bonaparte's  govern- 
ment, and  was  the  result  of  his  suspicious  disposition.  The 
agents  acted  as  spies  upon  each  other,  denounced  each  other, 
endeavored  to  make  themselves  necessary,  and  kept  alive  Bo- 
naparte's habitual  mistrust.  After  the  affair  of  the  infernal 
machine,  of  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  availed  himself  to  pro- 
cure the  dismissal  of  Fouche,  the  police  had  been  put  into 
the  hands  of  Eegnier,  the  chief  judge.  Bonaparte  thought 
that  his  suppressing  the  Ministry  of  Police,  which  was  a 
revolutionary  invention,  would  look  like  liberalism  and  mod- 
eration. He  soon  repented  of  this  step,  and  replaced  the 
regular  ministry  by  a  multitude  of  spies,  whom  he  continued 
to  employ  even  after  he  had  reinstated  Fouche.  His  Prefect 
of  Police,  Murat,  Duroc,  Savary  (who  then  commanded  the 
gendarmerie  d? elite),  Maret  (who  had  also  a  secret  police,  at 
the  head  of  which  was  M.  de  Semonville),  and  I  don't  know 
how  many  others,  did  the  work  of  the  suppressed  ministry. 

Fouche,  who  possessed  in  perfection  the  art  of  making 
himself  necessary,  soon  crept  back  secretly  into  the  favor  of 
the  First  Consul,  and  succeeded  in  getting  himself  made 
minister  a  second  time.  The  badly  conducted  trial  of  Gen- 
eral Moreau  aided  him  in  that  attempt,  as  will  be  seen  by 
what  follows. 

At  this  time  Cambace'res  and  Lebrun,  Second  and  Third 


54:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

Consuls,  took  very  little  part  in  the  administration  of  the 
Government.  The  latter,  who  was  an  old  man,  gave  Bona- 
parte no  concern.  The  .former,  a  distinguished  magistrate, 
who  was  of  great  weight  in  all  questions  within  the  province 
of  the  Council  of  State,  took  part  only  in  the  discussion  of 
certain  laws.  Bonaparte  profited  by  his  knowledge,  and  re- 
lied with  good  reason  on  the  ridicule  which  his  petty  vanity 
excited  to  diminish  his  importance.  Cambaceres,  charmed 
with  the  distinctions  conferred  on  him,  paraded  them  with 
childish  pleasure,  which  was  humored  and  laughed  at.  His 
self-conceit  on  certain  points  frequently  secured  his  safety. 

At  the  time  of  which  I  speak,  M.  de  Talleyrand  had  vast 
influence.  Every  great  political  question  passed  through  his 
hands.  Not  only  did  he  regulate  foreign  affairs  at  that 
period,  and  principally  determine  the  new  State  constitu- 
tions to  be  given  to  Germany — &  task  which  kid  the  founda- 
tions of  his  immense  fortune — but  he  had  long  conferences 
with  Bonaparte  every  day,  and  urged  him  to  measures  for 
the  establishment  of  his  power  on  the  basis  of  reparation  and 
reconstruction.  At  that  time  I  am  certain  that  measures  for 
the  restoration  of  monarchy  were  frequently  discussed  be- 
tween them.  M.  de  Talleyrand  always  remained  unalterably 
convinced  that  monarchical  government  only  was  suitable  to 
France  ;  while,  for  his  own  part,  it  would  have  enabled  him 
to  resume  all  his  former  habits  of  life,  and  replaced  him  on 
familiar  ground.  Both  the  advantages  and  the  abuses  proper 
to  courts  would  offer  him  chances  of  acquiring  power  and  in- 
fluence. I  did  not  know  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  all  I  had 
heard  of  him  had  prejudiced  me  strongly  against  him.  I 
was,  however,  struck  by  the  elegance  of  his  manners,  which 
presented  so  strong  a  contrast  to  the  rude  bearing  of  the 
military  men  by  whom  I  was  surrounded.  He  preserved 
among  them  the  indelible  characteristics  of  a  grand  seigneur. 
He  overawed  by  his  disdainful  silence,  by  his  patronizing 
politeness,  from  which  no  one  could  escape.  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, who  was  the  most  artificial  of  beings,  contrived  to 


Jf.  DE  TALLEYRAND.  55 

make  a  sort  of  natural  character  for  himself  out  of  a  number 
of  habits  deliberately  adopted;  he  adhered  to  them  under 
all  circumstances,  as  though  they  had  really  constituted  his 
true  nature.  His  habitually  light  manner  of  treating  the 
most  momentous  matters  was  almost  always  useful  to  him- 
self, but  it  frequently  injured  the  effect  of  his  actions. 

For  several  years  I  had  no  acquaintance  with  him — I 
distrusted  him  vaguely  ;  but  it  amused  me  to  hear  him  talk, 
and  see  him  act  with  ease  peculiar  to  himself,  and  which 
lent  infinite  grace  to  all  those  ways  of  his,  which  in  any 
other  man  would  be  regarded  as  sheer  affectation. 

The  winter  of  this  year  (1803)  was  very  brilliant.  Bona- 
parte desired  that  fetes  should  be  given,  and  he  also  occu- 
pied himself  with  the  restoration  of  the  theatres.  He  con- 
fided the  carrying  out  of  the  latter  design  to  his  Prefects 
of  the  Palace.  M.  de  Remusat  was  intrusted  with  the  charge 
of  the  Comedie  Francaise ;  a  number  of  pieces  which  had 
been  prohibited  by  Republican  policy  were  put  upon  the 
stage.  By  degrees  all  the  former  habits  of  social  life  were 
resumed.  This  was  a  clever  way  of  enticing  back  those  who 
had  been  familiar  with  that  social  life,  and  of  reuniting  the 
ties  that  bind  civilized  men  together.  This  system  was  skill- 
fully carried  out.  Hostile  opinions  became  weaker  daily. 
The  Royalists,  who  had  been  bafiled  on  the  18th  Fructidor, 
continued  to  hope  that  Bonaparte,  after  having  reestablished 
order,  would  include  the  return  of  the  house  of  Bourbon 
among  his  restorations.  They  deceived  themselves  on  this 
point  indeed,  but  at  least  they  might  tlinank  him  for  the  re- 
establishment  of  order ;  and  they  looked  forward  to  a  deci- 
sive blow,  which,  by  disposing  of  his  person  and  suddenly 
rendering  vacant  a  place  which  henceforth  no  one  but  he 
could  fill,  would  make  it  evident  that  only  the  legitimate 
sovereign  could  be  his  natural  successor.  This  secret  idea 
of  a  party  which  is  generally  confident  in  what  it  hopes,  and 
always  imprudent  in  what  it  attempts,  led  to  renewed  secret 
correspondences  with  our  princes,  to  attempts  by  the  emigres. 


56  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

and  to  movements  in  La  Vendee  ;  and  all  these  proceedings 
Bonaparte  watched  in  silence. 

On  the  other  hand,  those  who  were  enamored  of  federal 
government  observed  with  uneasiness  that  the  consular  au- 
thority tended  toward  a  centralization  which  was  by  degrees 
reviving  the  idea  of  royalty.  These  malcontents  were  al- 
most of  the  same  mind  as  the  few  individuals  who,  notwith- 
standing the  errors  into  which  the  cause  of  liberty  had  led 
some  of  its  partisans,  were  forced  by  their  consciences  to 
acknowledge  that  the  French  Revolution  was  a  movement 
of  public  utility,  and  who  feared  that  Bonaparte  might  suc- 
ceed in  paralyzing  its  action.  Now  and  then  a  few  words 
were  said  on  this  subject,  which,  although  very  moderate  in 
tone,  showed  that  the  Hoyalists  were  not  the  only  antagonists 
the  secret  projects  of  Bonaparte  would  meet  with.  Then 
there  were  the  ultra-Jacobins  to  be  kept  within  bounds,  and 
also  the  military,  who,  full  of  their  pretensions,  were  aston- 
ished that  any  rights  except  their  own  should  be  recognized. 
The  state  of  opinion  among  all  these  different  parties  was 
accurately  reported  to  Bonaparte,  who  steered  his  way  among 
them  prudently.  He  went  on  steadily  toward  a  goal,  which 
at  that  time  few  people  even  guessed  at.  He  kept  attention 
fixed  upon  a  portion  of  his  policy  which  he  enveloped  in 
mystery.  He  could  at  will  attract  or  divert  attention,  and 
alternately  excite  the  approbation  of  the  one  or  the  other 
party — disturb  or  reassure  them  as  he  found  it  necessary ; 
now  exciting  wonder,  and  then  hope.  He  regarded  the 
French  as  fickle  children  ready  to  be  amused  by  a  new  play- 
thing at  the  expense  of  their  own  dearest  interests.  His 
position  as  First  Consul  was  advantageous  to  him,  because, 
being  so  undefined,  it  excited  less  uneasiness  among  a  certain 
class  of  people.  At  a  later  period  the  positive  rank  of  Em- 
peror deprived  him  of  that  advantage ;  then,  after  having 
let  France  into  his  secret,  he  had  no  other  means  left  where- 
by to  efface  the  impression  from  the  country,  but  that  fatal 
lure  of  military  glory  which  he  displayed  before  her.  From 


M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.  57 

this  cause  arose  his  never-ending  wars,  his  interminable  con- 
quests ;  for  he  felt  we  must  be  occupied  at  all  hazards.  And 
now  we  can  see  that  from  this  cause,  too,  arose  the  obligation 
imposed  on  him  to  push  his  destiny  to  its  limits,  and  to  re- 
fuse peace  either  at  Dresden  or  even  at  Chatillon.  For 
Bonaparte  knew  that  he  must  infallibly  be  lost,  from  that 
day  on  which  his  compulsory  quietude  should  give  us  time 
to  reflect  upon  him  and  upon  ourselves. 

At  the  end  of  1802,  or  the  beginning  of  1803,  there  ap- 
peared in  the  "  Moniteur  "  a  dialogue  between  a  Frenchman, 
enthusiastic  on  the  subject  of  the  English  constitution,  and 
a  so-called  reasonable  Englishman,  who,  after  having  shown 
that  there  is,  strictly  speaking,  no  constitution  in  England, 
but  only  institutions,  all  more  or  less  adapted  to  the  position 
of  the  country  and  to  the  character  of  its  inhabitants,  en- 
deavors to  prove  that  these  institutions  could  not  be  adopted 
by  the  French  without  giving  rise  to  many  evils.  By  these 
and  similar  means,  Bonaparte  endeavored  to  control  that  de- 
sire for  liberty  which  always  springs  up  anew  in  the  minds 
of  the  French  people. 

About  the  close  of  1802  we  heard  at  Paris  of  the  death 
of  General  Leclerc,  of  yellow  fever,  at  Saint  Domingo.  In 
the  month  of  January  his  pretty  young  widow  returned  to 
France.  She  was  then  in  bad  health,  and  dressed  in  deep, 
somber  mourning ;  but  still  I  thought  her  the  most  charming 
person  I  had  ever  seen.  Bonaparte  strongly  exhorted  her  to 
conduct  herself  better  than  she  had  done  before  she  went 
out  to  Saint  Domingo ;  and  she  promised  everything,  but 
soon  broke  her  word. 

The  death  of  General  Leclerc  gave  rise  to  a  little  diffi- 
culty, and  the  settling  of  this  tended  toward  that  revival  of 
former  customs  which  was  preparing  the  way  for  monarchy. 
Bonaparte  and  Mme.  Bonaparte  put  on  mourning,  and  we 
received  orders  to  do  likewise.  This  was  significant  enough ; 
but  it  was  not  all.  The  ambassadors  were  to  pay  a  visit  at 
the  Tuileries,  to  condole  with  the  Consul  and  his  wife  on 


58  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUSAT. 

their  loss,  and  it  was  represented  to  them  that  politeness  re- 
quired them  to  wear  mourning  on  the  occasion.  They  met 
to  deliberate,  and,  as  there  was  not  time  for  them  to  obtain 
instructions  from  their  several  courts,  they  resolved  to  accept 
the  intimation  they  had  received,  thus  following  the  custom 
usual  in  such  cases.  Since  September,  1802,  an  ambassador 
from  England,  Lord  Whitworth,  had  replaced  the  charge 
&  affaires.  There  was  hope  of  a  lasting  peace ;  intercourse 
between  England  and  France  increased  daily ;  but,  notwith- 
standing this,  persons  who  were  a  little  better  informed  than 
the  crown  foresaw  causes  of  dissension  between  the  two 
Governments.  There  had  been  a  discussion  in  the  English 
Parliament  about  the  part  which  the  French  Government 
had  taken  in  the  matter  of  the  new  Swiss  constitution,  and 
the  "  Moniteur,"  which  was  entirely  official,  published  arti- 
cles complaining  of  certain  measures  which  were  taken  in 
London  against  Frenchmen.  Appearances  were,  however, 
extremely  favorable ;  all  Paris,  and  especially  the  Tuileries, 
seemed  to  be -given  up  to  fetes  and  pleasures.  Domestic  life 
at  the  chateau  was  all  peace,  when  suddenly  the  First  Con- 
sul's taking  a  fancy  to  a  young  and  beautiful  actress,  of  the 
Theatre  Fran§ais,  threw  Mme.  Bonaparte  into  great  distress, 
and  gave  rise  to  bitter  quarrels. 

Two  remarkable  actresses  (Miles.  Duchesnois  and  Georges) 
had  made  their  debut  in  tragedy  almost  at  the  same  time. 
The  one  was  very  plain,  but  her  genius  speedily  gained 
popularity ;  the  other  was  not  so  talented,  but  was  extremely 
beautiful.*  The  Parisian  public  sided  warmly  with  one  or 

*  The  following  is  my  father's  recollection  of  the  talents  and  the  rivalry  of 
these  two  celebrated  actresses:  "The  liaison  of  the  Emperor  with  Mile.  Georges 
was  much  talked  about.  I  myself  remember  when  a  controversy  raged  in  soci- 
ety respecting  the  merits  of  the  two  tragediennes.  After  each  representation 
given  by  the  one  or  the  other,  there  were  very  animated  disputes.  Connoisseurs 
and  the  public  in  general  preferred  Mile.  Duchesnois.  She  had  not  much  tal- 
ent, however,  and  acted  without  intelligence ;  but  she  had  passion,  tenderness, 
and  a  touching  voice,  which  moved  her  audience  to  tears.  It  was,  I  believe,  for 
her  that  the  phrase,  '  to  have  tears  in  the  voice,'  was  invented.  My  mother  and 


MADAME  BONAPARTE'S  JEALOUSY.  59 

the  other,  but  in  general  the  success  of  talent  was  greater 
than  that  of  beauty.  Bonaparte,  on  the  contrary,  was  charmed 
with  the  latter ;  and  Mme.  Bonaparte  soon  learned,  through 
the  spying  of  her  servants,  that  Mile.  Georges  had  on  sev- 
eral occasions  been  introduced  into  a  little  back  room  in  the 
chateau.  This  discovery  caused  her  extreme  distress;  she 
told  me  of  it  with  great  emotion,  and  shed  more  tears  than 
I  thought  such  a  temporary  affair  called  for.  I  represented 
to  her  that  gentleness  and  patience  were  the  only  remedies 
for  a  grief  which  time  would  certainly  cure  ;  and  it  was  dur- 
ing the  conversations  we  had  on  this  subject  that  she  gave 
me  a  notion  of  her  husband  which  I  would  not  otherwise 
have  formed.  According  to  her  account,  he  had  no  moral 
principles  whatever,  and  only  concealed  his  vicious  inclina- 
tions at  that  time  because  he  feared  they  might  harm  him ; 
but,  when  he  could  give  himself  up  to  them  without  any 
risk,  he  would  abandon  himself  to  the  most  shameful  pas- 
sions. Had  he  not  seduced  his  own  sisters  one  after  the 
other  ?  Did  he  not  hold  that  his  position  entitled  him  to 
gratify  all  his  inclinations  ?  And,  besides,  his  brothers  were 
practicing  on  his  weaknesses  to  induce  him  to  relinquish  all 
relations  with  his  wife.  As  the  result  of  their  schemes  she 
foresaw  the  much-dreaded  divorce,  which  had  already  been 
mooted.  "  It  is  a  great  misfortune  for  me,"  she  added,  "  that 
I  have  not  borne  a  son  to  Bonaparte.  That  gives  their  hatred 

my  aunt  (Mme.  de  Nansouty)  were  in  favor  of  Mile.  Duchesnois,  even  to  the 
point  of  disputing  with  my  father  himself,  who,  in  his  official  capacity,  was 
bound  to  be  impartial.  These  discussions  on  dramatic  art,  enlivened  by  the  fa- 
cility which  my  father's  functions  gave  us  for  attending  the  theatres,  inspired 
me  with  a  taste  for  literature  and  conversation  quite  beyond  my  age.  When 
very  young,  I  was  taken  to  the  theatre,  and  I  saw  both  these  Melpomenes.  It 
was  said  the  one  was  so  good  as  to  be  beautiful,  and  the  other  was  so  beautiful 
as  to  be  good.  The  latter,  who  was  then  very  young,  trusting  to  her  charms, 
was  indolent,  and  the  want  of  flexibility  in  her  voice  and  a  kind  of  drawl  in  her 
pronunciation  interfered  with  her  elocution.  I  think,  however,  in  reality  she 
was  more  clever  than  her  rival,  but  that,  by  using  her  talent  in  so  many  differ- 
ent ways,  she  at  the  same  time  developed  and  depreciated  it ;  and  she  deserved 
at  least  a  part  of  the  reputation  that  she  acquired  in  her  old  age." 


60  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

a  weapon  which  they  can  always  use  against  me."  "  But, 
madame,"  I  said,  "it  appears  to  me  that  your  daughter's 
child  almost  repairs  that  misfortune ;  the  First  Consul  loves 
him,  and  will,  perhaps,  in  the  end  adopt  him."  "  Alas  !  " 
replied  she,  "  that  is  the  object  of  my  dearest  wishes ;  but 
the  jealous  and  sullen  disposition  of  Louis  Bonaparte  leads 
him  to  oppose  it.  His  family  have  maliciously  repeated  to 
him  the  insulting  rumors  concerning  my  daughter's  conduct 
and  the  paternity  of  her  son.  Slander  has  declared  the  child 
to  be  Bonaparte's,  and  that  is  sufficient  to  make  Louis  refuse 
his  consent  to  the  adoption.  You  see  how  he  keeps  away 
from  us,  and  now  my  daughter  is  obliged  to  be  on  her  guard 
in  everything.  Moreover,  independently  of  the  good  rea- 
sons I  have  for  not  enduring  Bonaparte's  infidelities,  they 
always  mean  that  I  shall  have  a  thousand  other  annoyances 
to  submit  to." 

This  was  quite  true.  I  observed  that  from  the  moment 
the  First  Consul  paid  attention  to  another  woman — whether 
it  was  that  his  despotic  temper  led  him  to  expect  that  his 
wife  should  approve  this  indication  of  his  absolute  indepen- 
dence in  all  things,  or  whether  nature  had  bestowed  upon 
him  so  limited  a  faculty  of  loving  that  it  was  all  absorbed  by 
the  person  preferred  at  the  time,  and  that  he  had  not  a  par- 
ticle of  feeling  left  to  bestow  upon  another — he  became 
harsh,  violent,  and  pitiless  to  his  wife.  Whenever  he  had  a 
mistress,  he  let  her  know  it,  and  showed  a  sort  of  savage  sur- 
prise that  she  did  not  approve  of  his  indulging  in  pleasures 
which,  as  he  would  demonstrate,  so  to  speak,  mathematically, 
were  both  allowable  and  necessary  for  him.  "  I  am  not  an 
ordinary  man,"  he  would  say,  "  and  the  laws  of  morals  and 
of  custom  were  never  made  for  me."  Such  speeches  as 
these  aroused  the  anger  of  Mme.  Bonaparte,  and  she  replied 
to  them  by  tears  and  complaints,  which  her  husband  resented 
with  the  utmost  violence.  After  a  while  his  new  fancy 
would  vanish  suddenly,  and  his  tenderness  for  his  wife  re- 
vive. Then  he  was  moved  by  her  grief,  and  would  lavish 


MADAME  BONAPARTE' S  JEALOUSY.  61 

caresses  upon  her  as  unmeasured  as  his  wrath  had  been; 
and,  as  she  was  very  placable  and  gentle,  she  was  easily 
appeased. 

While  the  storm  lasted,  however,  my  position  was  ren- 
dered embarrassing  by  the  strange  confidences  of  which  I 
was  the  recipient,  and  at  times  by  proceedings  in  which  I 
was  obliged  to  take  part.  I  remember  one  occurrence  in 
particular,  during  the  winter  of  1803,  at  which,  and  the  ab- 
surd panic  into  which  it  threw  me,  I  have  often  laughed 
since. 

Bonaparte  was  in  the  habit  of  occupying  the  same  room 
with  his  wife ;  she  had  cleverly  persuaded  him  that  doing  so 
tended  to  insure  his  personal  safety.  "I  told  him,"  she 
said,  "that  as  I  was  a  very  light  sleeper,  if  any  nocturnal 
attempt  against  him  was  made,  I  should  be  there  to  call  for 
help  in  a  moment."  In  the  evening  she  never  retired  until 
Bonaparte  had  gone  to  bed.  But  when  Mile.  Georges  was 
in  the  ascendant,  as  she  used  to  visit  the  chateau  very  late, 
he  did  not  on  those  occasions  go  to  his  wife's  room  until  an 
advanced  hour  of  the  night.  One  evening  Mme.  Bonaparte, 
who  was  more  than  usually  jealous  and  suspicious,  kept  me 
with  her,  and  eagerly  talked  of  .her  troubles.  It  was  one 
o'clock  in  the  morning ;  we  were  alone  in  her  bondoir,  and 
profound  silence  reigned  in  the  Tuileries.  All  at  once  she 
rose.  "I  can  not  bear  it  any  longer,"  she  said.  "Mile. 
Georges  is  certainly  with  him ;  I  will  surprise  them."  I 
was  alarmed  by  this  sudden  resolution,  and  said  all  I  could 
to  dissuade  her  from  acting  on  it,  but  in  vain.  "  Follow 
me,"  she  said  ;  "  let  us  go  up  together."  Then  I  represented 
to  her  that  such  an  act,  very  improper  even  on  her  part, 
would  be  intolerable  on  mine  ;  and  that,  in  case  of  her  mak- 
ing the  discovery  which  she  expected,  I  should  certainly  be 
one  too  many  at  the  scene  which  must  ensue.  She  would 
listen  to  nothing ;  she  reproached  me  with  abandoning  her 
in  her  distress,  and  she  begged  me  so  earnestly  to  accompany 
her,  that,  notwithstanding  my  repugnance,  I  yielded,  saying 


62  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KfiMUSAT. 

to  myself  that  our  expedition  would  end  in  nothing,  as  no 
doubt  precautions  had  been  taken  to  prevent  a  surprise. 

Silently  we  ascended  the  back  staircase  leading  to  Bona- 
parte's room ;  Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  much  excited,  go- 
ing first,  while  I  followed  slowly,  feeling  very  much  ashamed 
of  the  part  I  was  being  made  to  play.  On  our  way  we  heard 
a  slight  noise.  Mme.  Bonaparte  turned  to  me  and  said, 
"  Perhaps  that  is  Rustan,  Bonaparte's  Mameluke,  who  keeps 
the  door.  The  wretch  is  quite  capable  of  killing  us  both." 
On  hearing  this,  I  was  seized  with  such  terror  that  I  could 
not  listen  further,  and,  forgetting  that  I  was  leaving  Mme. 
Bonaparte  in  utter  darkness,  I  ran  back  as  quickly  as  I  could 
to  the  boudoir,  candle  in  hand.  She  followed  me  a  few  min- 
utes after,  astonished  at  my  sudden  flight.  When  she  saw 
my  terrified  face,  she  began  to  laugh,  which  set  me  off  laugh- 
ing also,  and  we  renounced  our  enterprise.  I  left  her,  tell- 
ing her  I  thought  the  fright  she  had  given  me  was  a  very 
good  thing  for  her,  and  that  I  was  very  glad  I  had  yielded 
to  it. 

Mme.  Bonaparte's  jealousy  affected  her  sweet  temper  so 
much  that  it  could  not  long  be  a  secret  to  anybody.  I  was 
in  the  embarrassing  position  of  a  confidant  without  influence 
over  the  person  who  confided  in  me,  and  I  could  not  but 
appear  to  be  mixed  up  in  the  quarrels  which  I  witnessed. 
Bonaparte  thought  that  one  woman  must  enter  eagerly  into 
the  feelings  of  another,  and  he  showed  some  annoyance  at 
my  being  made  aware  of  the  facts  of  his  private  life. 

Meantime,  the  ugly  actress  grew  in  favor  with  the  pub- 
lic of  Paris,  and  the  handsome  one  was  frequently  received 
with  hisses.  M.  de  Eemusat  endeavored  to  divide  patronage 
equally  between  the  two ;  but  whatever  he  did  for  the  one 
or  for  the  other  was  received  with  equal  dissatisfaction,  either 
by  the  First  Consul  or  by  the  public. 

These  petty  affairs  gave  us  a  good  deal  of  annoyance. 
Bonaparte,  without  confiding  the  secret  of  his  interest  in  the 
fair  actress  to  M.  de  Remusat,  complained  to  my  husband, 


MADAME  BONAPARTE'S  JEALOUSY.  63 

saying  that  he  would  not  object  to  my  being  his  wife's  con- 
fidant, provided  I  would  only  give  her  good  advice.  My 
husband  represented  me  as  a  sensible  person,  brought  up 
with  a  great  regard  for  propriety,  and  who  would  be  most 
unlikely  to  encourage  Mme.  Bonaparte's  jealous  fancies. 
The  First  Consul,  who  was  still  well  disposed  toward  us,  ac- 
cepted this  view  of  my  conduct ;  but  thence  arose  another 
annoyance.  He  called  upon  me  to  interfere  in  his  conjugal 
quarrels,  and  wanted  to  avail  himself  of  what  he  called  my 
good  sense  against  the  foolish  jealousy  of  which  he  was 
wearied.  As  I  never  could  conceal  my  real  sentiments,  I 
answered  quite  sincerely,  when  he  told  me  how  weary  he 
was  of  all  these  scenes,  that  I  pitied  Mme.  Bonaparte  very 
much,  whether  she  suffered  with  or  without  cause,  and  that 
he,  above  all  persons,  ought  to  excuse  her ;  but,  at  the  same 
time,  I  admitted  that  I  thought  it  undignified  on  her  part  to 
endeavor  to  prove  the  infidelity  which  she  suspected  by  em- 
ploying her  servants  as  spies  on  her  husband.  The  First 
Consul  did  not  fail  to  tell  his  wife  that  I  blamed  her  in  this 
respect,  and  then  I  was  involved  in  endless  explanations  be- 
tween the  husband  and  the  wife,  into  which  I  imported  all 
the  ardor  natural  to  my  age,  and  also  the  devotion  and  at- 
tachment which  I  felt  for  both  of  them.  We  went  through 
a  constant  succession  of  scenes,  whose  details  have  now  faded 
from  my  memory,  and  in  which  Bonaparte  would  be  at  one 
time  imperious,  harsh,  excessively  suspicious,  and  at  another 
suddenly  moved,  tender,  almost  gentle,  atoning  with  a  good 
grace  for  the  faults  he  acknowledged  but  did  not  renounce. 

I  remember  one  day,  in  order  to  avoid  an  awkward  tete- 
a-tete  with  Mme.  Bonaparte,  he  made  me  remain  to  dinner. 
His  wife  was  just  then  very  angry,  because  he  had  declared 
that  henceforth  he  would  have  a  separate  apartment,  and  he 
insisted  that  I  should  give  my  opinion  on  this  point.  I  was 
quite  unprepared  to  answer  him,  and  I  knew  that  Mme. 
Bonaparte  would  not  readily  forgive  me  if  I  did  not  decide 
in  her  favor.  I  tried  to  evade  a  reply ;  but  Bonaparte,  who 


64  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

enjoyed  my  embarrassment,  insisted.  I  could  find  no  other 
way  out  of  the  difficulty  than  by  saying  that  I  thought  any- 
thing which  might  make  people  think  the  First  Consul  was 
altering  his  manner  of  living  would  give  rise  to  injurious 
reports,  and  that  the  least  change  in  the  arrangements  of  the 
chdteau  would  inevitably  be  talked  about.  Bonaparte  laughed, 
and,  pinching  my  ear,  said,  "  Ah !  you  are  a  woman,  and  you 
all  back  each  other." 

Nevertheless,  he  carried  out  his  resolution,  and  from  that 
time  forth  occupied  a  separate  apartment.  His  manner  to- 
ward his  wife,  however,  became  more  affectionate  after  this 
breeze,  and  she,  on  her  side,  was  less  suspicious  of  him.  She 
adopted  the  advice  which  I  constantly  urged  upon  her,  to 
treat  such  unworthy  rivalry  with  disdain.  "It  would  be 
quite  time  enough  to  fret,"  I  said,  "  if  the  Consul  chose  one 
of  the  women  in  your  own  society ;  that  would  be  a  real  grief, 
and  for  me  a  serious  annoyance."  Two  years  afterward  my 
prediction  was  only  too  fully  realized,  especially  as  regarded 
myself. 


CHAPTEK  II. 

(1803.) 

A  Eeturn  to  the  Customs  of  the  Monarchy — M.  de  Fontanes — Mme.  d'Houdetot — 
Kumors  of  War— Meeting  of  the  Corps  Le"gislatif— Departure  of  the  English  Am- 
bassador— M.  Maret — Marshal  Berthier — Journey  of  the  First  Consul  to  Belgium 
—A  Carriage  Accident— The  Amiens  Fe"tes. 

WITH  the  exception  of  this  slight  disturbance,  the  winter 
passed  quietly.  The  progress  of  the  restoration  of  order  was 
marked  by  several  new  institutions.  The  lyceums  were  or- 
ganized ;  the  magistrates  again  wore  official  robes,  and  were 
also  invested  with  some  importance.  A  collection  of  French 
paintings  was  placed  at  the  Louvre,  and  called  "  the  Museum," 
and  M.  Denon  was  appointed  superintendent.  Pensions  and 
rewards  were  conferred  on  men  of  letters,  and  M.  de  Fontanes 
was  frequently  consulted  on  these  points.  Bonaparte  liked 
to  talk  with  him,  and  their  conversations  were  in  general 
very  entertaining.  The  First  Consul  amused  himself  by  at- 
tacking the  pure  and  classical  taste  of  M.  de  Fontanes,  who 
defended  our  French  chefs-cTceuvre  with  warmth,  and  thus  he 
gained  a  reputation  for  courage  among  those  present.  For 
there  were  already  persons  at  that  Court  who  took  so  readily 
to  the  rdle  of  the  courtier,  that  they  looked  upon  any  one  who 
ventured  to  admire  "Merope"or  "  Mithridates,"  after  the 
master  had  declared  that  he  cared  for  neither  of  those  works, 
as  quite  a  heroic  being. 

Bonaparte  appeared  to  derive  great  amusement  from  these 
literary  controversies.  At  one  time  he  even  thought  of  in- 
viting certain  men  of  letters  to  come  twice  a  week  to  Mme. 


66  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

Bonaparte's  receptions,  so  that  he  might  enjoy  their  conver- 
sation. M.  de  Remusat,  who  was  acquainted  with  a  number 
of  distinguished  men  in  Paris,  was  directed  to  invite  them  to 
the  chateau.  Accordingly,  one  evening,  several  academicians 
and  well-known  literary  men  were  invited.  Bonaparte  was 
in  a  good  humor  that  night ;  he  talked  very  well,  and  allowed 
others  to  talk ;  he  was  agreeable  and  animated.  I  was 
charmed  to  see  him  make  himself  so  agreeable.  I  was  very 
anxious  that  he  should  make  a  favorable  impression  on  .per- 
sons who  had  not  previously  known  him,  and  thus  defeat 
certain  prejudices  which  prevailed  against  him.  When  he 
chose,  he  could  exhibit  keen  judgment,  as  he  did,  for  instance, 
in  appraising  the  worth  of  the  old  Abbe  Morellet's  intellect.* 
Morellet  was  a  straightforward,  positive  man,  who  proceeded 
in  argument  from  fact  to  fact  and  would  never  admit  the 
power  of  the  imagination  on  the  progress  of  human  ideas. 
Bonaparte  delighted  in  upsetting  this  system.  Allowing  his 
imagination  to  take  any  flight  it  wished — and  in  the  Abbe's 
presence  it  carried  him  far — he  broached  all  kinds  of  subjects, 
gave  full  flight  to  his  ideas,  was  highly  amused  at  the  bewil- 
derment of  the  Abbe,  and  was  really  very  entertaining. 

The  next  day  he  spoke  with  pleasure  of  the  previous 
evening,  and  said  he  would  like  to  have  many  such.  A 
similar  reception  was  therefore  fixed  for  a  few  days  later. 
Somebody  (I  forget  who)  began  to  talk  with  much  animation 
about  liberty  of  thought  and  speech,  and  the  advantages 
which  they  secure  to  nations.  This  led  to  a  discussion  con- 
siderably less  free  than  on  the  former  occasion,  and  the  Con- 
sul maintained  a  silence  when  seemed  to  paralyze  the  com- 
pany. On  the  third  evening  he  came  in  late,  was  absent 
and  gloomy,  and  spoke  only  a  few  unconnected  sentences. 
Every  one  was  silent  and  constrained ;  and  the  next  day  the 
First  Consul  told  us  that  he  saw  there  was  nothing  to  be 

*  The  Abbe  Morellet,  a  friend  of  Mme.  d'Houdetot  and  Mme.  de  Vergennes, 
was  a  well-known  personage  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  was  called 
by  Voltaire  the  Abbe  Mord-les.  He  died  January  12,  1819.— P.  R. 


MADAME  &HOUDETOT.  67 

made  of  these  men  of  letters,  nothing  to  be  gained  by  ad- 
mitting them  to  intimacy,  and  he  did  not  wish  they  should 
be  invited  again.  He  could  not  bear  any  restraint,  and  being 
obliged  to  appear  affable  and  in  a  good  humor  on  a  certain 
day  and  at  a  certain  hour  was  a  yoke  which  he  hastened  to 
shake  off. 

During  that  winter  two  distinguished  academicians,  MM. 
de  la  Harpe  and  de  Saint-Lambert,  died.  I  regretted  the 
latter  very  much,  because  I  was  exceedingly  attached  to 
Mme.  d'Houdetot,  whose  intimate  friend  he  had  been  for 
forty  years,  and  at  whose  house  he  died.  This  delightful 
old  lady  received  all  the  best  and  most  agreeable  society  of 
Paris.  I  was  a  constant  visitor  at  her  house  ;  there  I  found 
the  revival  of  a  day  which  then  seemed  lost  beyond  recall — 
I  mean  that  in  which  people  conversed  in  an  agreeable  and 
instructive  manner.  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  whose  age  and  dis- 
position alike  kept  her  aloof  from  all  political  parties,  en- 
joyed the  repose  that  the  country  was  enjoying,  and  profited 
by  it  to  collect  all  that  remained  of  Parisian  good  society  at 
her  house.  They  came  willingly  to  tend  and  to  amuse  her 
old  age.  To  go  to  her  house  was  a  relief  from  the  restraint 
under  which  I  lived  at  the  Tuileries,  partly  from  the  exam- 
ple of  others  and  partly  from  the  experience  which  I  was 
beginning  to  acquire. 

About  this  time  a  rumor  rose  that  war  with  England  was 
likely  to  break  out  again.  Private  letters  revealing  certain 
enterprises  set  on  foot  in  La  Yendee  were  published.  In 
these  letters  the  English  Government  was  accused  of  aiding 
the  Yendeans,  and  George  Cadoudal  was  named  in  them  as 
the  agent  between  the  English  Government  and  the  Chouans. 
M.  Andre  was  also  mentioned ;  it  was  said  he  had  got  into 
France  secretly,  after  already  having  endeavored,  before  the 
18th  Fructidor,  to  assist  the  Eoyalist  cause.  "While  this  rumor 
was  spreading,  the  Legislative  Assembly  was  called  together. 
The  report  of  the  state  of  the  Kepublic  which  was  laid  be- 
fore it  was  remarkable,  and  gave  rise  to  much  comment.  It 


68  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

included  peace  with  foreign  powers ;  the  conduswm  given  at 
Ratisbon  upon  the  new  partition  of  Germany,  and  recognized 
bj  all  the  sovereigns ;  the  constitution  accepted  by  the  Swiss ; 
the  Concordat ;  the  regulation  of  public  education ;  the  for- 
mation of  the  Institute ;  *  the  improved  administration  of 
justice ;  the  amelioration  of  the  finances ;  the  Civil  Code,  of 
which  a  portion  was  submitted  to  the  Assembly;  various 
public  works  commenced  both  on  our  frontiers  and  in 
France ;  plans  for  Antwerp,  for  Mont  Cenis,  the  banks  of 
the  Rhine,  and  the  canal  de  TOurcq ;  the  acquisition  of  the 
island  of  Elba;  the  possession  of  Saint  Domingo;  several 
proposals  for  laws,  upon  indirect  taxation,  on  the  formation 
of  chambers  of  commerce,  on  the  exercise  of  the  profession 
of  medicine,  and  on  manufactures.  All  this  formed  a  satis- 
factory statement,  and  one  honorable  to  the  Government. 
At  the  end  of  the  report,  however,  a  few  words  were  slipped 
in  with  reference  to  the  possibility  of  a  rupture  with  Eng- 
land, and  the  necessity  for  increasing  the  army.  Neither  the 
Legislative  Assembly  nor  the  Tribunate  offered  any  opposi- 
tion whatever,  and  approbation  which  at  that  time  was  really 
deserved  was  bestowed  upon  so  fair  a  beginning  to  many 
great  undertakings. 

In  March,  bitter  complaints  appeared  in  our  newspapers 
of  certain  pamphlets  against  Bonaparte  which  were  circulated 
in  England.  This  sensitiveness  to  strictures  by  the  English 
free  press  was  only  a  pretext ;  the  occupation  of  Malta  and 
our  intervention  in  the  Government  of  Switzerland  were  the 
true  causes  of  the  rupture.  On  the  8th  of  March,  1803,  a 
message  from  the  King  of  England  to  the  Parliament  de- 
clared that  important  differences  between  the  two  Govern- 
ments had  arisen,  and  complained  of  the  warlike  preparations 
which  were  being  made  in  the  ports  of  Holland.  Immedi- 
ately afterward  the  scene  took  place  in  which  Bonaparte 

*  It  would  be  more  correct  to  say  that  the  First  Consul  reorganized  the  In- 
stitute, by  suppressing  the  class  of  moral  and  political  sciences  on  January  23, 
1803.  This  class  was  not  reestablished  till  after  1830.— P.  R. 


DEPARTURE  OF  ENGLISH  AMBASSADOR.          69 

either  feigned  or  allowed  himself  to  exhibit  violent  anger  in 
the  presence  of  all  the  ambassadors.  A  little  later  he  left 
Paris  for  Saint  Cloud. 

Notwithstanding  his  absorption  in  public  affairs,  he  took 
care  to  direct  one  of  his  Prefects  of  the  Palace  to  write  a 
letter  of  congratulation  and  compliment  to  the  celebrated 
musician  Paisiello  on  the  opera  of  "  Proserpine,"  which  had 
just  been  given  in  Paris.  The  First  Consul  was  exceedingly 
anxious  to  attract  the  celebrated  people  of  all  countries  to 
France,  and  he  paid  them  liberally. 

Shortly  afterward  the  rupture  between  France  and  Eng- 
land took  place,  and  the  English  ambassador — before  whose 
house  a  great  crowd  had  been  in  the  habit  of  assembling 
daily,  in  order  to  judge  of  the  state  of  affairs,  according  to 
the  preparations  for  departure  which  they  could  or  could  not 
perceive  in  the  courtyard — left  Paris  abruptly.  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand communicated  to  the  Senate  a  statement  of  the  rea- 
sons that  rendered  war  inevitable.  The  Senate  replied  that 
they  could  only  applaud  the  combined  moderation  and  firm- 
ness of  the  First  Consul,  and  sent  a  deputation  to  Saint  Cloud 
to  express  their  gratitude  and  their  devotion.  M.  de  Yau- 
blanc,  when  speaking  in  the  Legislative  Assembly,  exclaimed 
enthusiastically,  "What  chief  of  a  nation  has  ever  shown  a 
greater  love  of  peace  ? "  If  it  were  possible  to  separate  the 
history  of  the  negotiations  of  the  First  Consul  from  that  of 
his  exploits,  it  would  read  like  the  life  of  a  magistrate  whose 
sole  endeavor  had  been  the  establishment  of  peace.  The 
Tribunate  expressed  a  desire  that  energetic  measures  should 
be  taken  ;  and,  after  these  various  acts  of  admiration  and  obe- 
dience, the  session  of  the  Legislative  Assembly  came  to  a  close. 

Then  appeared  certain  violent  notes  against  the  English 
Government,  which  soon  became  numerous,  and  dealt  in 
detail  with  the  attacks  of  the  free  daily  press  in  London. 
Bonaparte  dictated  the  substance  of  these  notes,  and  M. 
Maret  drew  them  up.  Thus  the  sovereign  of  a  great  empire 
entered,  so  to  speak,  into  a  war  of  words  with  journalists, 


70  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

and  lowered  his  own  dignity  by  allowing  it  to  be  seen  that 
he  was  stung  by  the  criticisms  of  ephemeral  newspapers, 
whose  comments  it  would  have  been  far  wiser  to  ignore.  It 
was  easy  for  the  English  journalists  to  find  out  how  hard 
their  remarks  hit  the  First  Consul,  and  a  little  later  the  Em- 
peror of  France,  and  they  accordingly  redoubled  their  at- 
tacks. How  many  times,  when  we  saw  him  gloomy  and  out 
of  temper,  did  Mme.  Bonaparte  tell  us  it  was  because  he  had 
read  some  article  against  himself  in  the  "Courier"  or  the 
"  Sun  "  !  He  tried  to  wage  a  pen-and-ink  war  with  the  Eng- 
lish press ;  he  subsidized  certain  journals  in  London,  expended 
a  great  deal  of  money,  and  deceived  no  one  either  in  France 
or  in  England. 

I  have  said  that  he  often  dictated  notes  on  this  subject 
for  the  "  Moniteur."  Bonaparte  dictated  with  great  ease. 
He  never  wrote  anything  with  his  own  hand.  His  hand- 
writing was  bad,  and  as  illegible  by  himself  as  by  others ;  his 
spelling  was  very  defective.  He  utterly  lacked  patience  to 
do  anything  whatever  with  his  own  hands.  The  extreme 
activity  of  his  mind  and  the  habitual  prompt  obedience  ren- 
dered to  him  prevented  him  from  practicing  an  occupation 
in  which  the  mind  must  necessarily  wait  for  the  action  of 
the  body.  Those  who  wrote  from  his  dictation — first  M. 
Bourrienne,  then  M.  Maret,  and  Menneval,  his  private  secre- 
tary— had  made  a  sort  of  shorthand  for  themselves,  in  order 
that  their  pens  might  travel  as  fast  as  his  thoughts.  He  dic- 
tated while  walking  to  and  fro  in  his  cabinet.  When  he 
grew  angry,  he  would  use  violent  imprecations,  which  were 
suppressed  in  writing,  and  which  had  at  least  the  advantage 
of  giving  the  writer  time  to  come  up  with  him.  He  never  re- 
peated anything  that  he  once  said,  even  if  it  had  not  been 
heard ;  and  this  was  very  hard  on  the  poor  secretary,  for  he 
remembered  accurately  what  he  had  said  and  detected  every 
omission.  One  day  he  read  a  tragedy  in  manuscript,  and  it 
interested  him  sufficiently  to  inspire  him  with  a  fancy  to 
make  some  alterations  in  it.  "  Take  a  pen  and  paper,"  said 


M.  MARET.  71 

he  to  M.  de  Remusat,  "  and  write  for  me."  Hardly  giving 
my  husband  time  to  seat  himself  at  a  table,  he  began  to  dic- 
tate so  quickly  that  M.  de  Reniusat,  although  accustomed  to 
write  with  great  rapidity,  was  bathed  in  perspiration  while 
trying  to  follow  him.  Bonaparte  perceived  his  difficulty, 
and  would  stop  now  and  then  to  say,  "  Come,  try  to  under- 
stand me,  for  I  will  not  repeat  what  I  say."  He  always  de- 
rived amusement  from  causing  any  one  uneasiness  and  dis- 
tress. His  great  general  principle,  which  he  applied  to  every- 
thing, both  small  and  great,  was  that  there  could  be  no  zeal 
where  there  was  no  disquiet.  Fortunately  he  forgot  to  ask 
for  the  sheet  of  observations  he  had  dictated.  M.  de  Re- 
musat and  I  have  often  tried  to  read  it  since,  but  we  have 
never  been  able  to  make  out  a  word  of  it. 

M.  Maret,  the  Secretary  of  State,  was  a  man  of  very 
ordinary  intellect ;  indeed,  Bonaparte  did  not  dislike  medi- 
ocrity, because  he  said  he  had  enough  brains  to  give  those 
about  him  what  they  wanted  in  that  way.  M.  Maret  rose  to 
high  favor  in  consequence  of  his  great  facility  in  writing 
from  the  First  Consul's  dictation.  He  accustomed  himself 
to  follow  and  seize  upon  the  first  indication  of  Bonaparte's 
idea  so  faithfully  that  he  could  report  it  just  as  it  came  from 
the  speaker's  brain  without  making  an  observation.  His 
favor  with  his  master  was  perhaps  still  more  largely  due  to 
the  fact  that  he  felt  or  feigned  boundless  devotion  to  him, 
and  it  was  displayed  by  such  enthusiastic  admiration  that 
Bonaparte  could  not  help  being  flattered.  So  far  did  M. 
Maret  carry  the  art  of  skillful  adulation,  that  it  was  posi- 
tively asserted  that  when  he  traveled  with  the  Emperor  he 
took  the  trouble  to  leave  with  his  wife  drafts  of  letters, 
which  she  copied  carefully,  complaining  that  her  husband 
was  so  exclusively  devoted  to  his  master  that  she  could  not 
help  feeling  jealous.  As  all'  the  letters  were  delivered  at 
the  Emperor's  own  quarters  while  he  was  traveling,  and  as 
he  frequently  amused  himself  by  opening  them,  these  clever 
complainings  produced  exactly  the  intended  effect. 


72  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

When  M.  Maret*  was  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs,  he 
took  care  not  to  follow  the  example  of  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
who  used  to  say  that  it  was,  above  all,  Bonaparte  himself 
whom  it  was  necessary  for  that  minister  to  manage.  Maret, 
on  the  contrary,  fostered  all  Bonaparte's  passions,  and  was 
surprised  that  foreign  sovereigns  should  dare  to  be  angry 
when  he  insulted  them,  or  should  offer  any  resistance  to 
their  own  ruin.  He  thus  advanced  his  personal  fortune  at 
the  expense  of  Europe,  whose  just  interests  an  honest  and 
able  minister  would  have  endeavored  to  protect.  A  courier 
was  always  in  readiness,  by  whom  he  might  dispatch  to  any 
one  of  the  sovereigns  the  first  angry  words  that  escaped 
from  Bonaparte,  when  he  heard  news  which  displeased  him. 
His  weak  complaisance  was  sometimes  injurious  to  his  mas- 
ter. It  caused  more  than  one  rupture  which  was  regretted 
when  the  first  outbreak  of  violence  had  passed,  and  it  proba- 
bly contributed  to  the  fall  of  Bonaparte;  for,  in  the  last 
year  of  his  reign,  while  he  lingered  at  Dresden  uncertain 
what  to  do,  Maret  delayed  for  eight  days  the  retreat  it  was 
so  important  to  make,  because  he  had  not  the  courage  to 
inform  the  Emperor  of  the  defection  of  Bavaria,  a  piece  of 
intelligence  it  was  most  necessary  he  should  learn.f  An 

*  Afterward  Due  de  Bassano. 

f  The  duties  of  the  most  conscientious  editor  do  not  bind  him  to  explain,  to 
justify,  or,  still  less,  to  contradict  the  assertions  or  the  suppositions  of  the  au- 
thor whose  recollections  he  lays  before  the  public.  It  is  evident  that  a  great 
many  of  the  views  expressed  here  are  personal,  or  that  they  represent  public 
opinion  at  that  period  of  our  history.  While  taking  the  responsibility  of  what 
he  prints,  the  editor  does  not  profess  entire  agreement  with  all  the  opinions  of 
the  author ;  and  it  is  not  necessary  to  bring  forward  an  opinion  in  opposition  to 
an  impression,  or  a  new  document  or  a  recent  history  in  contrast  with  a  contem- 
poraneous impression  of  the  facts,  on  every  occasion  of  divergence.  For  in- 
stance, M.  Maret  doubtless  merits  reproach  on  more  than  one  head,  but  the 
accusation  that  he  was  so  base  as  not  to  inform  the  Emperor  in  time  of  the 
defection  of  Bavaria,  in  1813,  is  probably  one  of  those  imputations  which  are 
due  to  the  contempt  with  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  treated  his  pitiful,  insignificant 
successor.  He  is  known  to  have  said,  "  I  never  knew  but  one  man  so  stupid  as 
the  Due  de  Bassano ;  he  was  M.  Maret."  It  is  probable  that  Maret,  on  his 
arrival  at  Leipsic  in  October,  1813,  was  made  aware  of  the  treaty  of  Bavaria 


M.  MARET.  73 

anecdote  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  may  be  related  here,  as  a  sam- 
ple of  the  skill  with  which  that  astute  minister  managed 

with  the  Coalition,  but  that  he  did  not  attach  any  great  importance  to  it,  or  did 
not  dare  speak  of  it  to  a  master  who  was  becoming  day  by  day  less  capable  of 
bearing  the  truth,  and  of  facing  things  which  displeased  him.  The  Due  de  Bas- 
sano  was,  of  all  the  ministers,  the  least  fit  to  cope  with  this  fatal  tendency. 
There  was  in  his  nature  a  mixture  of  sincere  servility  and  blind  admiration, 
which  made  him  a  courtier  rather  than  a  minister.  The  following  is  my  father's 
opinion  of  Bassano :  "  He  was  neither  an  utterly  unintelligent  nor  a  bad  man, 
but  he  was  one  of  those  people  whose  mediocrity,  alike  in  good  or  in  evil,  may 
be  as  pernicious  as  stupidity  or  villainy.  He  had  but  little  intellect ;  his  self- 
sufficiency  and  haughtiness  as  an  improvised  nobleman  and  a  parvenu  statesman 
were  absolutely  absurd.  His  heavy  frivolity,  his  bourgeois  dignity,  and  his  vul- 
gar affectation  obscured  what  there  really  was  in  him.  He  had  a  great  capacity 
for  work,  much  facility  of  expression,  a  quick  and  tolerably  just  perception  of 
the  superficial  and  material  side  of  affairs,  an  accurate  memory  for  details,  a 
faculty  for  attending  to  several  things  at  once,  and  a  talent  for  identifying  him- 
self with  the  idea  or  even  the  sentiment  of  what  was  dictated  to  him.  The  lat- 
ter quality  made  him  a  useful,  or  rather  a  convenient  instrument,  and  as  a 
minister  of  the  second  or  third  rank  he  would  have  done  well.  He  had  no  lean- 
ing toward  wrong  or  injustice.  Violence  directed  against  individuals  was  not  to 
his  liking,  and  it  is  said  that  he  sometimes  averted  it.  He  was,  moreover,  sin- 
cerely attached  to  the  Emperor,  and,  to  my  knowledge,  he  never  endeavored  to 
elude  by  any  meanness  those  misfortunes  which  in  later  years  that  attachment 
drew  down  upon  himself ;  but,  full  of  self-confidence,  greedy  of  favor,  jealous 
of  his  influence,  inflated  with  a  sense  of  bis  own  rank  and  power,  he  regarded 
with  the  eye  of  an  enemy  merit,  independence,  anything  which  might  tend  to 
throw  himself  into  the  shade,  or  did  not  serve  his  ambition,  flatter  his  vanity,  or 
minister  to  his  greatness.  To  keep  his  place  near  the  Emperor  had  become  his 
sole  thought,  and  was  regarded  by  him  as  his  chief  duty ;  to  please  the  Emperor 
in  everything  was  all  his  study  and  all  his  policy.  The  Napoleonic  system,  as 
the  Emperor  practiced  it,  was  to  him  official  truth,  and  official  truth  was  to  him 
all  truth."  In  the  Memoirs  of  Count  Beugnot,  published  a  few  years  ago  by 
his  grandson,  the  following  passage  occurs :  "  M.  Maret  has  an  excellent  heart ; 
he  is  therefore  by  nature  inclined  to  everything  good.  His  mind  is  cultivated, 
and,  if  diplomacy  had  not  drawn  him  away  from  the  profession  of  letters,  he 
would  have  made  a  respectable,  if  not  a  distinguished,  figure  in  literature.  His 
talent  lies  chiefly  in  a  singular  facility  for  reproducing  the  ideas  of  others,  and 
he  has  exercised  it  so  largely  in  editing  the  *  Moniteur,'  and  in  other  work  of  the 
same  nature,  that  his  whole  mind  is,  as  it  were,  absorbed  by  it.  It  was  the 
Abbe  Sieyes  who  originally  procured  the  post  of  Secretary  to  the  Consulate  for 
him.  At  first  he  failed  to  please  the  First  Consul,  precisely  on  account  of  those 
qualities  which  since  then  have  endeared  him  to  Bonaparte — his  obsequiousness, 
his  eagerness,  his  propensity  to  merge  his  own  mind  in  that  of  another ;  but  by 


74:      MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

Bonaparte,  and  also  of  the  completeness  of  his  own  ascen- 
dancy. 

A  treaty  of  peace  between  England  and  France  was  be- 
ing arranged  at  Amiens  in  the  spring  of  1810.  Certain 
difficulties  which  had  arisen  between  the  plenipotentiaries 
were  giving  rise  to  some  little  uneasiness,  and  Bonaparte 
was  anxiously  expecting  dispatches.  A  courier  arrived,  and 
brought  to  the  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  the  much-desired 
signature.  M.  de  Talleyrand  put  it  in  his  pocket  and  went 
to  the  First  Consul.  He  appeared  before  him  with  that  im- 
movable countenance  which  he  wears  on  every  occasion. 
For  a  whole  hour  he  remained  with  Bonaparte,  transacting 
a  number  of  important  matters  of  business,  and  when  all  was 
done,  "  Now,"  said  he,  smiling,  "  I  am  going  to  give  you  a 
great  pleasure ;  the  treaty  is  signed,  and  here  it  is."  Bona- 
parte was  astounded  at  this  fashion  of  announcing  the  mat- 
ter. "  Why  did  you  not  tell  me  at  once  ? "  he  demanded. 
"  Ah,"  replied  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "  because  then  you  would 
not  have  listened  to  me  on  any  other  subject.  When  you 
are  pleased,  you  are  not  always  pleasant."  The  self-control 
displayed  in  this  reticence  struck  the  Consul,  "  and,"  added 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  "  did  not  make  him  angry,  because  he  saw 
immediately  how  far  it  might  be  made  useful  to  himself." 

degrees,  as  the  First  Consul  absorbed  authority,  and  became  accustomed  to  rule 
alone,  he  grew  reconciled  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Consulate.  The  despotism  of 
the  one  and  the  favor  of  the  other  grew  in  the  same  proportion."  ("  Mdmoires 
du  Comte  Beugnot,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  316.)  Baron  Ernouf  has  recently  published  an 
apology  for  the  Due  de  Bassano,  under  the  title  "  Maret,  Due  de  Bassano." 
These  several  estimates,  which  are  different  without  being  contradictory,  show 
that  the  influence  of  the  Due  de  Bassano  in  the  Imperial  councils  was  not  bene- 
ficial to  the  common  weal.  He  was  apparently  one  of  those  who  think  that  a 
disagreeable  disclosure  or  unwelcome  advice  is  more  hurtful  to  the  offerer  than 
useful  to  the  recipient.  Such  people  are  careful  rather  to  foster  the  weaknesses 
than  to  consider  the  actual  situation  of  their  masters,  and  to  serve  their  passions 
at  the  expense  of  their  interests.  Such  flatterers  are  doubtless  detestable,  but 
the  source  of  their  crimes  is  absolute  power.  It  is  because  the  monarch  is  all- 
powerful  that  it  is  dangerous  to  displease  him.  All  meanness,  as  well  as  all 
justice,  emanates  from  the  king. — P.  R. 


MARSHAL  BERTHIEB.  75 

Another  person,  who  was  really  more  attached  to  Bona- 
parte, and  quite  as  demonstrative  in  his  admiration  for  him 
as  M.  Maret,  was  Marshal  Berthier,  Prince  of  Wagram. 
He  had  served  in  the  campaign  in  Egypt,  and  had  become 
strongly  attached  to  his  General.  Berthier's  friendship  for 
him  was  so  great  that,  little  as  Bonaparte  valued  anything 
coming  from  the  heart,  he  could  not  but  respond  to  it  in 
some  degree.  The  sentiment  was,  however,  very  unequally 
divided  between  them,  and  was  used  by  the  powerful  one  of 
the  two  as  a  means  of  exaction.  One  day  Bonaparte  said  to 
M.  de  Talleyrand :  "  I  really  can  not  understand  how  a  rela- 
tion that  bears  some  appearance  of  friendship  has  established 
itself  between  Berthier  and  me.  I  don't  indulge  in  useless 
sentiments,  and  Berthier  is  so  uninteresting  that  I  do  not 
know  why  I  should  care  at  all  about  him  ;  and  yet,  when  I 
think  of  it,  I  believe  I  really  have  some  liking  for  him." 
"  If  you  do  care  about  him,"  replied  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "  do 
you  know  the  reason  why?  It  is  because  he  believes  in  you." 

These  anecdotes,  which  I  set  down  as  they  recur  to  my 
memory,  did  not  come  to  my  knowledge  till  a  much  later 
period,  when  my  greater  intimacy  with  M.  de  Talleyrand 
revealed  to  me  the  chief  traits  in  Bonaparte's  character.  At 
first  I  was  completely  deceived  by  him,  and  was  very  happy 
to  be  so.  I  knew  he  had  genius,  I  saw  that  he  was  disposed 
to  make  amends  for  the  passing  wrongs  he  did  his  wife,  and 
I  remarked  his  friendship  for  Berthier  with  pleasure ;  he 
caressed  little  Napoleon  in  my  presence,  and  seemed  to  love 
him.  I  regarded  him  as  accessible  to  kindly  natural  feelings, 
and  my  youthful  imagination  arrayed  him  in  all  those  quali- 
ties which  I  desired  to  find  in  him.  It  is  only  just  to  him 
also  to  admit  that  excess  of  power  intoxicated  him ;  that  his 
passions  were  increased  in  violence  by  the  facility  with  which 
he  was  enabled  to  gratify  them ;  but  that  while  he  was  young, 
and  as  yet  uncertain  of  the  future,  he  frequently  hesitated 
between  the  open  exhibition  of  vice  and,  at  least,  the  affec- 
tation of  virtue. 


76  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

After  the  declaration  of  war  with  England,  somebody  (I 
do  not  know  who)  suggested  to  Bonaparte  the  idea  of  an  in- 
vasion by  means  of  flat-bottomed  boats.  I  can  not  say  with 
certainty  whether  he  really  believed  in  this  plan,  or  whether 
he  only  used  it  as  a  pretext  for  collecting  and  increasing  his 
army,  which  he  assembled  at  the  camp  of  Boulogne.  So 
many  people  maintained  that  a  descent  upon  the  shores  of 
England  in  this  way  was  practicable,  that  it  is  quite  possible 
he  may  have  thought  fate  had  a  success  of  the  kind  in  store 
for  him.  Enormous  works  were  begun  in  our  ports,  and  in 
some  of  the  Belgian  towns ;  the  army  marched  to  the  coast, 
and  Generals  Soult  and  Ney  were  sent  to  command  it  at 
different  points.  The  idea  of  a  conquest  of  England  fired 
the  general  imagination ;  and  even  the  English  themselves 
began  to  feel  uneasy,  and  thought  it  necessary  to  make  some 
preparations  for  defense.  Attempts  were  made  to  excite  the 
public  mind  against  the  English  by  dramatic  representations ; 
scenes  from  the  life  of  "William  the  Conqueror  were  repre- 
sented at  the  theatres.  The  conquest  of  Hanover  was  easily 
effected,  but  then  came  the  blockade  of  our  ports  that  did  us 
so  much  harm. 

During  the  summer  of  this  year  (1803)  a  journey  to  Bel- 
gium was  arranged,  and  Bonaparte  required  that  it  should  be 
made  with  great  magnificence.  He  had  little  trouble  in  per- 
suading Mme.  Bonaparte  to  take  with  her  everything  that 
could  make  an  impression  on  the  people  to  whom  she  was 
about  to  exhibit  herself.  Mme.  Talhouet  and  I  were  selected 
to  accompany  her,  and  the  Consul  gave  me  thirty  thousand 
francs  for  those  expenses  which  he  prescribed.  He  set  out 
on  the  24:th  of  June,  with  a  cortege  of  several  carriages,  two 
generals  of  his  guard,  his  aides-de-camp,  Duroc,  two  Prefects 
of  the  Palace  (M.  de  Remusat  and  a  Piedmontese  named 
Salmatoris),  and  commenced  the  journey  in  great  pomp. 

Before  we  set  out,  we  went  for  one  day  to  Mortef ontaine, 
an  estate  which  had  been  purchased  by  Joseph  Bonaparte. 
All  the  family  were  assembled  there,  and  a  strange  occur- 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  BELGIUM.  77 

rence  took  place.  We  passed  the  morning  in  walking  about 
the  gardens,  which  are  beautiful.  When  dinner  hour  ap- 
proached, a  question  arose  about  the  placing  of  the  guests. 
The  elder  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  at  Mortef  ontaine,  and  Joseph 
told  his  brother  that  he  intended  to  take  his  mother  in  to 
dinner,  and  to  place  her  on  his  right  hand,  while  Mme.  Bona- 
parte was  to  sit  on  his  left.  The  First  Consul  took  offense 
at  this  arrangement,  which  placed  his  wife  in  the  second  rank, 
and  insisted  that  his  brother  should  transfer  their  mother  to 
that  position.  Joseph  refused,  and  no  argument  could  in- 
duce him  to  give  way.  When  dinner  was  announced,  Joseph 
took  his  mother's  hand,  and  Lucien  escorted  Mme.  Bonaparte. 
The  First  Consul,  incensed  at  this  opposition  to  his  will,  hur- 
riedly crossed  the  room,  took  the  arm  of  his  wife,  passed  out 
before  every  one,  seated  her' beside  himself,  and  then,  turn- 
ing to  me,  ordered  me  to  place  myself  near  him.  The  com- 
pany were  all  greatly  embarrassed,  I  even  more  so  than  the 
others ;  and  Mme.  Joseph  Bonaparte,*  to  whom  some  polite- 
ness was  due,  found  herself  at  the  bottom  of  the  table,  as  if 
she  were  not  one  of  the  family. 

The  stiffness  and  gloom  of  that  dinner-party  may  be  easily 
imagined.  The  brothers  were  angry,  Mme.  Bonaparte  was 
wretched,  and  I  was  excessively  embarrassed  by  my  promi- 
nent position.  During  the  dinner  Bonaparte  did  not  address 
a  single  member  of  his  family ;  he  occupied  himself  with  his 
wife,  talked  to  me,  and  chose  this  opportune  occasion  to  in- 
form me  that  he  had  that  morning  restored  to  my  cousin,  the 
Vicomte  da  Yergennes,  certain  forests  which  had  long  been 
sequestrated  on  account  of  his  emigration,  but  which  had  not 
been  sold.  I  was  touched  by  this  mark  of  his  kindness,  but 
it  was  very  vexatious  to  me  that  he  selected  such  a  moment 
to  tell  me  of  it,  because  the  gratitude  which  I  would  other- 
wise have  gladly  expressed,  and  the  joy  which  I  really  felt, 
made  me  appear  to  the  observers  of  the  little  scene  to  be 

*  Joseph  Bonaparte  had  married  Mile.  Julia  Clary,  the  daughter  of  a  mer- 
chant at  Marseilles.—?.  B. 


78  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KfiMUSAT. 

talking  freely  to  him,  while  I  was  really  in  a  state  of  painful 
constraint.  The  remainder  of  the  day  passed  drearily,  as 
may  be  supposed,  and  we  left  Mortefontaine  on  the  morrow. 

An  accident  which  happened  at  the  beginning  of  our 
journey  increased  the  regard  which  I  was  then  happy  to  feel 
for  Bonaparte  and  his  wife.  He  traveled  with  her  and  one 
of  the  generals  of  his  guard,  and  his  carriage  was  preceded 
by  one  containing  Duroc  and  three  aides-de-camp.  A  third 
carriage  was  occupied  by  Mme.  Talhouet,  M.  de  Remusat, 
and  myself  ;  two  others  followed.  Shortly  after  we  had  left 
Compiegne,  where  we  visited  a  military  school,  on  our  way 
to  Amiens,  our  carriage  was  violently  overturned.  Mme. 
Talhouet's  head  was  badly  cut ;  M.  de  Remusat  and  I  were 
only  bruised.  With  some  trouble  we  were  extricated  from 
the  carriage.  Bonaparte,  who  was  on  in  front,  was  told  of 
this  accident ;  he  at  once  alighted  from  his  carriage,  and 
with  Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  much  frightened  about  me, 
hastened  to  join  us  at  a  cottage,  whither  we  had  been  taken. 
I  was  so  terrified  that,  as  soon  as  I  saw  Bonaparte,  I  begged 
him  with  tears  to  send  me  back  to  Paris ;  I  already  disliked 
traveling  as  much  as  did  the  pigeon  of  La  Fontaine,  and  in 
my  distress  I  cried  out  that  I  must  return  to  my  mother  and 
my  children. 

Bonaparte  said  a  few  words  intended  to  calm  me ;  but, 
finding  that  he  could  not  succeed  in  doing  so,  he  took  my  arm 
in  his,  gave  orders  that  Mme.  Talhouet  should  be  placed  in 
one  of  the  carriages,  and,  after  satisfying  himself  that  M.-  de 
Remusat  was  none  the  worse  for  the  accident,  led  .me,  fright- 
ened as  I  was,  to  his  own  carriage,  and  made  me  get  in  with 
him.  "We  set  off  again,  and  he  took  pains  to  cheer  up  his 
wife  and  me,  and  told  us,  laughingly,  to  kiss  each  other  and 
cry,  " because,"  he  said,  "that  always  does  women  good." 
After  a  while  his  animated  conversation  distracted  my 
thoughts,  and  my  fear  of  the  further  journey  subsided. 
Mme.  Bonaparte  having  referred  to  the  grief  my  mother 
would  feel  if  any  harm  happened  to  me,  Bonaparte  ques- 


ENTHUSIASM  AT  AMIENS.  79 

tioned  me  about  her,  and  appeared  to  be  well  aware  of  the 
high  esteem  in  which  she  was  held  in  society.  Indeed,  it 
was  largely  to  this  that  his  attention  to  me  was  due.  At  that 
period,  when  so  many  people  still  held  back  from  the  ad- 
vances he  made  to  them,  he  was  greatly  gratified  that  my 
mother  had  consented  to  my  holding  a  place  in  his  household. 
At  that  time  I  was  in  his  eyes  almost  a  personage  Whose  ex- 
ample would,  he  hoped,  be  followed. 

On  the  evening  of  the  same  day  we  arrived  at  Amiens, 
where  we  were  received  with  enthusiasm  impossible  to  de- 
scribe. The  horses  were  taken  from  the  carriage,  and  re- 
placed by  the  inhabitants,  who  insisted  on  drawing  it  them- 
selves. I  was  the  more  affected  by  this  spectacle,  as  it  was 
absolutely  novel  to  me.  Alas !  since  I  had  been  of  an  age  to 
observe  what  was  passing  around  me,  I  had  witnessed  only 
scenes  of  terror  and  woe,  I  had  heard  only  sounds  of  hate  and 
menace ;  and  the  joy  of  the  inhabitants  of  Amiens,  the  gar- 
lands that  decorated  our  route,  the  triumphal  arches  erected 
in  honor  of  him  who  was  represented  on  all  these  devices  as 
the  saviour  of  France,  the  crowds  who  fought  for  a  sight  of 
him,  the  universal  blessings  which  could  not  have  been  ut- 
tered to  order — the  whole  spectacle,  in  fact,  so  affected  me 
that  I  could  not  restrain  my  tears.  Mme.  Bonaparte  wept ; 
I  saw  even  the  eyes  of  Bonaparte  himself  glisten  for  a  mo- 
ment. 


CHAPTEE  III. 

(1803.) 

Continuation  of  the  Journey  to  Belgium— Opinions  of  the  First  Consul  on  Grati- 
tude, on  Glory,  and  on  the  French — Ghent,  Malines,  and  Brussels — The  Clergy 
— M.  de  Koquelaure — Eetum  to  Saint  Cloud — Preparations  for  an  Invasion  of 
England— Marriage  of  Mme.  Leclerc— Journey  of  the  First  Consul  to  Boulogne 
—Illness  of  M.  de  E&nusat— I  rejoin  him— Conversations  with  the  First  Consul. 

ON  Bonaparte's  arrival  in  town,  the  Prefect  of  the  Palace 
was  directed  to  summon  the  various  persons  in  authority,  that 
they  might  be  presented  to  him.  The  prefect,  the  mayor, 
the  bishop,  the  presidents  of  the  tribunals,  would  read  an 
address  to  him,  and  then,  turning  to  Mme.  Bonaparte,  make 
her  a  little  speech  also.  According  to  the  mood  he  happened 
to  be  in,  Bonaparte  would  listen  to  these  discourses  to  the 
end,  or  interrupt  them  by  questioning  the  deputation  on  the 
nature  of  their  respective  functions,  or  on  the  district  in 
which  they  exercised  them.  He  rarely  put  questions  with 
an  appearance  of  interest,  but  rather  with  the  air  of  a  man 
who  desires  to  show  his  knowledge,  and  wants  to  see  whether 
he  can  be  answered.  These  speeches  were  addressed  to  the 
Republic ;  but  any  one  who  reads  them  may  see  that  in 
almost  every  respect  they  might  have  been  addressed  to  a 
sovereign.  Indeed,  the  mayors  of  some  of  the  Flemish 
towns  went  so  far  as  to  urge  the  Consul  to  "  complete  the 
happiness  of  the  world  by  exchanging  his  precarious  title  for 
one  better  suited  to  the  lofty  destiny  to  which  he  was  called." 
I  was  present  the  first  time  that  happened,  and  I  kept  my 
eyes  fixed  upon  Bonaparte.  When  these  very  words  were 
uttered,  he  had  some  difficulty  in  checking  the  smile  that 


THE  JOURNEY  TO  BELGIUM.  81 

hovered  about  his  lips ;  but,  putting  strong  control  upon 
himself,  he  interrupted  the  orator,  and  replied,  in  a  tone  of 
feigned  anger,  that  it  would  be  unworthy  of  him  to  usurp 
an  authority  which  must  affect  the  existence  of  the  Republic. 
Thus,  like  Caesar,  he  repudiated  the  crown,  though  perhaps 
he  was  not  ill  pleased  that  they  were  beginning  to  offer  it  to 
him.  The  good  people  of  the  provinces  we  visited  were 
not  very  far  wrong ;  for  the  splendor  that  surrounded  us, 
the  sumptuousness  of  that  military  yet  brilliant  court,  the 
strict  ceremonial,  the  imperious  tone  of  the  master,  the  sub- 
mission of  all  about  him,  and,  finally,  the  expectation  that 
homage  should  be  paid  the  wife  of  the  first  magistrate,  to 
whom  the  Republic  certainly  owed  none — all  this  strongly 
resembled  the  progress  of  a  king. 

After  these  audiences,  Bonaparte  generally  rode  out  on 
horseback ;  he  showed  himself  to  the  people,  who  followed 
him  with  acclamations  ;  he  visited  the  public  monuments 
and  manufactories,  but  always  in  a  hurried  way,  for  he  could 
never  get  over  that  precipitation  which  gave  him  an  ill-bred 
air.  Afterward  he  would  give  a  dinner,  or  attend  a  fete 
which  had  been  prepared  for  him,  and  this  was  always  the 
most  wearisome  part  of  the  business  to  him.  "  I  am  not 
made  for  pleasure,"  he  would  say,  in  a  melancholy  tone. 
Then  he  would  leave  the  town,  after  having  received  peti- 
tions, attended  to  complaints,  and  distributed  alms  and  pres- 
ents. He  was  accustomed,  when  on  a  journey  of  this  sort, 
to  inform  himself  at  each  town  he  went  to  what  public 
establishments  were  wanting  there,  and  he  would  order  them 
to  be  founded,  in  commemoration  of  his  visit.  The  inhabi- 
tants would  load  him  with  blessings  for  this  munificence. 
But  shortly  afterward  a  mandate  from  the  Minister  of  the 
Interior  would  arrive,  drawn  up  in  this  form  :  "  In  conform- 
ity with  the  gracious  permission  of  the  First  Consul "  (later 
it  was  "the  Emperor"),  "you  are  directed,  citizen  mayors, 
to  have  such  and  such  a  building  constructed,  taking  care 
that  the  expenses  shall  be  defrayed  by  the  funds  of  your 


82  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

commune."  Thus  these  towns  would  suddenly  find  them- 
selves obliged  to  alter  the  disposition  of  their  funds,  very 
often  at  a  moment  when  they  were  not  sufficient  for  neces- 
sary expenses.  The  Prefect  took  care,  however,  that  the 
orders  were  executed,  or  at  least  the  most  useful  portion  of 
of  them ;  and  it  must  be  admitted  that,  from  one  end 
France  to  the  other,  everything  was  being  embellished,  and 
that  the  general  prosperity  was  such  that  new  works,  even  of 
the  most  important  nature,  might  safely  be  undertaken  every- 
where. 

At  Arras,  at  Lille,  and  at  Dunkirk,  we  had  similar  re- 
ceptions; but  it  seemed  to  me  that  the  enthusiasm  cooled 
down  when  we  got  beyond  the  former  boundaries  of  France. 
At  Ghent,  especially,  we  detected  some  coldness  in  the  popu- 
lar greeting.  In  vain  did  the  authorities  endeavor  to  stir  up 
the  zeal  of  the  inhabitants ;  they  were  curious,  but  not  en- 
thusiastic. Bonaparte  was  a  little  annoyed,  and  inclined  to 
proceed  without  delay.  He  thought  better  of  this,  however, 
and  said  in  the  evening  to  his  wife :  "  These  people  are 
bigoted  and  under  the  influence  of  the  priests ;  we  must  re- 
main a*  long  time  at  church  to-morrow,  and  propitiate  the 
clergy  by  some  favor.  In  this  way  we  shall  regain  lost 
ground."  Next  day  he  attended  high  mass  with  every  ap- 
pearance of  devoutness ;  he  talked  to  the  Bishop,  whom  he 
completely  captivated,  and  by  degrees  he  obtained  the  popu- 
lar acclamations  he  desired.  At  Ghent  he  met  the  daughters 
of  the  Due  de  Yillequier,  formerly  one  of  the  four  Gentle- 
men of  the  Chamber  to  the  King.  These  ladies  were  nieces 
of  the  Bishop,  and  Bonaparte  restored  to  them  the  beautiful 
estate  of  Yillequier,  with  its  large  revenues.  I  had  the  hap- 
piness of  contributing  to  this  restitution,  by  urging  it  with 
all  my  might,  both  upon  Bonaparte  and  upon  his  wife.  The 
two  amiable  young  ladies  have  never  forgotten  this  to  me. 
When  I  assured  Bonaparte  of  their  gratitude,  "  Ah,"  said  he, 
"  gratitude !  That  is  a  poetic  word  which  has  no  meaning 
in  times  of  revolution ;  and  what  I  have  just  done  would  not 


OPINIONS  OF  THE  FIRST  CONSUL.  83 

prevent  your  friends  from  rejoicing  if  some  Koyalist  emis- 
sary should  succeed  in  assassinating  me  during  this  journey." 
And,  as  I  betrayed  the  surprise  with  which  I  heard  him,  he 
continued :  "  You  are  young ;  you  do  not  know  what  politi- 
cal hatred  is.  It  is  like  a  pair  of  spectacles :  one  sees  every- 
body, every  opinion,  or  every  sentiment  only  through  the 
glass  of  one's  passions.  Hence,  nothing  is  bad  or  good  of  it- 
self, but  simply  according  to  the  party  to  which  one  belongs. 
In  reality,  this  mode  of  seeing  is  convenient,  and  we  profit 
by  it ;  for  we  also  have  our  spectacles,  and,  if  we  do  not  see 
things  through  our  passions,  we  see  them  through  our  in- 
terests." 

"  But,"  I  replied,  "  where,  in  such  a  system,  do  you  place 
the  applause  which  you  do  care  to  win  ?  For  what  class  of 
men  do  you  spend  your  life  in  great  and  often  perilous  en- 
terprises ? " 

"  Ah,"  he  answered,  "  one  can  not  avoid  L  one's  destiny ; 
he  who  is  called  can  not  resist.  Besides,  human  pride  finds 
the  public  it  desires  in  that  ideal  world  which  is  called  pos- 
terity. He  who  believes  that,  a  hundred  years  hence,  a  fine 
poem,  or  even  a  line  in  one,  will  recall  a  great  action  of  his 
own,  or  that  a  painting  will  commemorate  it,  has  his  imagi- 
nation fired  by  that  idea.  The  battle-field  has  no  dangers, 
the  cannon  roars  in  vain  ;  to  him  it  is  only  that  sound  which, 
a  thousand  years  hence,  will  carry  a  brave  man's  name  to  the 
ears  of  our  distant  descendants." 

"  I  shall  never  be  able  to  understand,"  I  continued,  "  how 
a  man  can  expose  himself  to  every  sort  of  danger  for  fame's 
sake,  if  his  own  inward  sentiment  be  only  contempt  for  the 
men  of  his  own  time." 

Here  Bonaparte  interrupted  me  quickly.  "  I  do  not  de- 
spise men,  madame — that  is  a  thing  you  must  never  say ;  and 
I  particularly  esteem  the  French." 

I  smiled  at  this  abrupt  declaration,  and,  as  he  guessed 
why,  he  smiled  also ;  and  approaching  me  and  pulling  my 
ear,  which  was,  as  I  have  already  said,  a  trick  of  his  when 


84:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

he  was  in  a  good  humor,  he  repeated,  "  Do  you  hear,  ma- 
dame  ?  you  must  never  say  that  I  despise  the  French." 

From  Ghent  we  went  to  Antwerp,  where  we  were  re- 
ceived with  a  special  ceremony.  On  occasions  of  visits  from 
kings  and  princes,  the  people  of  Antwerp  are  in  the  habit  of 
parading  through  their  streets  a  giant,  who  never  makes  his 
appearance  except  on  such  solemn  festivals.  Although  we 
were  neither  king  nor  prince,  we  were  obliged  to  yield  to 
the  people's  wish  in  this  matter,  and  it  put  Bonaparte  in 
good  humor  with  the  town  of  Antwerp.  He  occupied  him- 
self much  while  there  with  the  important  extension  which 
he  designed  for  its  harbor,  and  gave  orders  for  the  com- 
mencement of  the  great  works  which  have  since  been  exe- 
cuted there. 

On  the  way  from  Antwerp  to  Brussels  we  stopped  at 
Malines  for  a  few  hours,  and  there  we  saw  the  new  Arch- 
bishop, M.  de  Roquelaure.*  He  was  Bishop  of  Senlis  under 
Louis  XVI.,  and  had  been  the  intimate  friend  of  my  great- 
uncle,  the  Count  de  Yergennes.  I  had  seen  a  great  deal  of 
him  in  my  childhood,  and  I  was  glad  to  meet  him  again. 
Bonaparte  talked  to  him  in  a  very  insinuating  manner.  At 
this  period  he  affected  great  esteem  for  the  priests,  and  care 
for  their  interests.  He  knew  how  steadily  religion  supports 
royalty,  and  he  hoped  that  through  the  priests  he  might  get 
the  people  taught  that  catechism  which  we  have  since  seen, 
in  which  all  who  did  not  love  and  obey  the  Emperor  were 
threatened  with  eternal  condemnation.  For  the  first  time 
since  the  Revolution,  the  clergy  found  the  Government  oc- 
cupying itself  with  their  welfare,  and  giving  them  rank  and 
consideration.  They  showed  themselves  grateful,  and  were 
useful  to  Bonaparte  until  the  moment  came  when  he  endea- 
vored to  impose  his  ever-growing  despotism  on  their  con- 

*  M.  de  Roquelaure  had  been  Bishop  of  Senlis  and  Almoner  to  the  King. 
He  became  Archbishop  of  Malines  in  1802.  The  Emperor  replaced  him  in  1808 
by  the  Abbe  de  Pradt.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Academie  Fran9aise,  and  died 
in  1818.  He  did  not  belong  to  the  family  of  the  Due  de  Roquelaure. — P.  R. 


ENTRY  INTO  BRUSSELS.  85 

sciences,  and  the  priests  had  to  choose  between  him  and  their 
duty.  At  this  time,  however,  the  words,  "  He  has  reestab- 
lished religion,"  *  were  in  every  pious  mouth,  and  told  im- 
mensely in  his  favor. 

Our  entry  into  Brussels  was  magnificent.  Several  fine 
regiments  awaited  the  First  Consul  at  the  gate,  where  he 
mounted  his  horse.  Mine.  Bonaparte  found  a  superb  car- 
riage, presented  to  her  by  the  city,  awaiting  her ;  the  streets 
were  lavishly  decorated,  cannon  were  fired,  the  bells  were 
rung ;  the  numerous  clergy  were  assembled  in  great  pomp 
on  the  steps  of  all  the  churches ;  there  was  an  immense 
crowd  of  the  population,  and  also  many  foreigners,  and  the 
weather  was  beautiful.  I  was  enchanted.  Our  stay  in 
Brussels  was  a  succession  of  brilliant  fetes.  The  French 
ministers,  Consul  Lebrun,  the  envoys  from  the  foreign 
courts  who  had  business  to  arrange,  came  to  meet  us  there. 
At  Brussels  I  heard  M.  de  Talleyrand  reply  in  an  adroit  and 
flattering  manner  to  a  question  suddenly  put  to  him  by  Bona- 
parte, who  asked  him  how  he  had  so  rapidly  made  his  great 
fortune  ?  "  Nothing  could  be  more  simple,"  replied  M.  de 
Talleyrand ;  "  I  bought  stock  on  the  17th  Brumaire,  and  I 
sold  it  again  on  the  19th." 

One  Sunday  we  were  to  visit  the  cathedral  in  great  state. 
M.  de  Remusat  went  early  in  the  morning  to  the  church,  to 
arrange  the  ceremony.  He  had  been  directed  not  to  object 
to  any  honor  which  the  clergy  might  propose  to  pay  to  the 
First  Consul  on  this  occasion.  As,  however,  it  was  arranged 
that  the  priests  should  go  to  the  great  doors  with  the  canopy 
and  the  cross  to  receive  the  First  Consul,  a  question  arose 
whether  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  to  share  this  distinction  with 
him,  and  Bonaparte  did  not  venture  to  bring  her  so  promi- 
nently forward.  She  was,  therefore,  placed  in  a  tribune 
with  the  Second  Consul.  At  twelve  o'clock,  the  hour  agreed 
upon,  the  clergy  left  the  altar,  and  proceeded  to  the  grand 

*  Bonaparte,  knowing  that  in  Belgium  he  would  have  to  deal  with  religious 
people,  took  Cardinal  Caprera  with  him.     The  Cardinal  was  extremely  useful. 


86  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

entrance  of  the  magnificent  Church  of  Sainte  Gudule.  They 
awaited  the  arrival  of  the  First  Consul,  but  he  did  not  ap- 
pear. At  first  they  were  astonished,  then  alarmed  ;  but  they 
presently  perceived  that  he  had  slipped  into  the  church,  and 
seated  himself  on  the  throne  which  was  prepared  for  him. 
The  priests,  surprised  and  disconcerted,  returned  to  the  sanc- 
tuary, and  commenced  divine  service.  The  fact  was,  just  as 
he  was  setting  out,  Bonaparte  was  told  that,  at  a  similar 
ceremony,  Charles  Y.  had  preferred  to  enter  the  Church  of 
Sainte  Gudule  by  a  little  side-door  which  had  ever  after  been 
called  by  his  name ;  and  it  seemed  he  had  taken  a  fancy  to 
use  the  same  entrance,  hoping,  perhaps,  that  henceforth  it 
would  be  called  the  door  of  Charles  Y.  and  of  Bonaparte. 

One  morning  the  numerous  and  magnificent  regiments 
which  had  been  brought  to  Brussels  were  reviewed  by  the 
Consul,  or,  as  on  this  occasion  I  ought  to  call  him,  the  Gen- 
eral. His  reception  by  the  troops  was  nothing  short  of  rap- 
turous. It  was  well  worth  seeing  how  he  talked  to  the  sol- 
diers— how  he  questioned  them  one  after  the  other  respect- 
ing their  campaigns  or  their  wounds ;  taking  particular  in- 
terest in  the  men  who  had  accompanied  him  to  Egypt.  I 
have  heard  Mme.  Bonaparte  say  that  her  husband  was  in  the 
constant  habit  of  poring  over  the  list  of  what  are  called  the 
cadres  of  the  army,  at  night,  before  he  slept.  He  would  go 
to  sleep  repeating  the  names  of  the  corps,  and  even  those  of 
some  of  the  individuals  who  composed  them ;  he  kept  those 
names  in  a  corner  of  his  memory,  and  this  habit  came  to  his 
aid  when  he  wanted  to  recognize  a  soldier,  and  to  give  him 
the  pleasure  of  a  cheering  word  from  his  General.  He  spoke 
to  the  subalterns  in  a  tone  of  good  fellowship,  which  de- 
lighted them  all,  as  he  reminded  them  of  their  common  feats 
of  arms.  Afterward,  when  his  armies  became  so  numerous, 
when  his  battles  became  so  deadly,  he  disdained  to  exercise 
this  kind  of  fascination.  Besides,  death  had  extinguished  so 
many  remembrances,  that  in  a  few  years  it  became  difficult 
for  him  to  find  any  great  number  of  the  companions  of  his 


M.  MONGE.  87 

early  exploits ;  and,  when  lie  addressed  his  soldiers  before 
leading  them  into  battle,  it  was  as  a  perpetually  renewed 
posterity,  to  which  the  preceding  and  destroyed  army  had 
bequeathed  its  glory.  But  even  this  somber  style  of  en- 
couragement availed  for  a  long  time  with  a  nation  which  be- 
lieved itself  to  be  fulfilling  its  destiny  while  sending  its  sons 
year  after  year  to  die  for  Bonaparte. 

I  have  said  that  Bonaparte  took  great  pleasure  in  recall- 
ing his  campaign  in  Egypt;  it  was,  indeed,  his  favorite 
theme  of  discourse.  He  had  taken  with  him,  on  the  journey 
I  am  describing,  M.  Monge  the  savant,  whom  he  had  made 
a  senator,  and  whom  he  liked  particularly,  for  the  sole  reason 
that  he  was  among  the  number  of  the  members  of  the  Insti- 
tute who  had  gone  with  him  to  Egypt.  Bonaparte  often 
talked  to  him  of  that  expedition — "  that  land  of  poetry,"  he 
would  say,  "  which  was  trodden  by  Caesar  and  Pompey."  He 
would  speak  with  enthusiasm  of  the  time  when  he  appeared 
before  the  amazed  Orientals  like  a  new  Prophet;  for  the 
sway  he  exercised  over  imagination,  being  the  most  complete 
of  all,  he  prized  more  highly  than  any  other.  "  In  France," 
he  said,  "  one  must  conquer  everything  at  the  point  of  de- 
monstration. In  Egypt  we  did  not  require  our  mathematics ; 
did  we,  Monge  ? " 

It  was  at  Brussels  that  I  began  to  get  accustomed  to  M. 
de  Talleyrand,  and  to  shake  off  the  earlier  impression  made 
by  his  disdainful  manner  and  sarcastic  disposition.  The  idle- 
ness of  a  court  life  makes  the  day  seem  a  hundred  hours 
long,  and  it  happened  that  we  often  passed  many  of  those 
hours  together  in  the  salon,  waiting  until  it  should  please 
Bonaparte  to  come  in  or  to  go  out.  It  was  during  one  of 
these  weary  waits  that  I  heard  M.  de  Talleyrand  complain 
that  his  family  had  not  realized  any  of  the  plans  he  had 
formed  for  them.  His  brother,  Archambault  de  Perigord, 
had  just  been  sent  into  exile  for  having  indulged  in  the  sar- 
castic language  common  to  the  family.  He  had,  however, 
applied  it  to  persons  of  rank  too  high  to  be  ridiculed  with 


88  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

impunity,  and  he  had  also  offended  by  refusing  to  give  his 
daughter  in  marriage  to  Eugene  de  Beauharnais,  to  whom 
he  had  preferred  Count  Just  de  Noailles.  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
who  was  quite  as  anxious  as  Mme.  Bonaparte  that  his  niece 
should  marry  Beauharnais,  blamed  his  brother's  conduct 
severely,  and  I  could  perfectly  understand  that  such  an  alli- 
ance would  have  been  advantageous  to  his  personal  policy. 
One  of  the  first  things  that  struck  me,  when  I  had  talked  for 
a  little  while  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  was  the  entire  absence 
of  any  kind  of  illusion  or  enthusiasm  on  his  part  with  regard 
to  all  that  was  passing  around  us.  Every  one  else  was  more 
or  less  under  the  influence  of  feelings  of  this  kind.  The 
implicit  obedience  of  the  military  officers  might  easily  pass 
for  zeal,  and,  in  the  case  of  some  of  them,  it  really  was  devo- 
tion. The  ministers  affected  or  felt  profound  admiration ; 
M.  Maret  paraded  his  worship  of  the  First  Consul  on  every 
occasion ;  Berthier  was  happy  in  the  sincerity  of  his  attach- 
ment ;  in  short,  every  one  seemed  to  feel  something.  M.  de 
Remusat  tried  to  like  his  post,  and  to  esteem  the  man  who 
had  conferred  it  on  him.  As  for  myself,  I  cultivated  every 
opportunity  of  emotion  and  of  self-deception ;  and  the  calm 
indifference  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  amazed  me.  "  Good  heav- 
ens ! "  I  said  to  him  on  one  occasion,  "  how  is  it  possible  that 
you  can  live  and  work  without  experiencing  any  emotion 
either  from  what  passes  around  us,  or  from  your  own  ac- 
tions ? "  "  Ah !  what  a  woman  you  are,  and  how  young ! " 
he  replied:  and  then  he  began  to  ridicule  me,  as  he  did 
every  one  else.  His  jests  wounded  my  feelings,  yet  they 
made  me  laugh.  I  was  angry  with  myself  for  being  amused, 
and  yet,  because  my  vanity  was  pleased  at  my  own  compre- 
hension of  his  wit,  less  shocked  than  I  ought  to  have  been 
at  the  hardness  of  his  heart.  However,  I  did  not  yet 
know  him,  and  it  was  not  till  much  later,  when  I  had  got 
over  the  restraint  that  he  imposed  on  every  one  at  first, 
that  I  observed  the  curious  mixture  of  qualities  in  his 
character. 


RETURN  TO  SAINT  CLOUD.  89 

On  leaving  Brussels  we  went  to  Liege  and  Maestricht, 
and  reentered  the  former  boundaries  of  France  by  way  of 
Mezieres  and  Sedan.  Mine.  Bonaparte  was  charming  during 
this  journey,  and  left  an  impression  on  my  mind  of  her  kind- 
ness and  graciousness  which,  as  I  found  fifteen  years  after- 
ward, time  could  not  efface. 

I  was  delighted  to  return  to  Paris,  and  to  find  myself 
once  more  among  my  family  and  free  from  the  restraint  of 
court  life.  M.  ,de  Remusat,  like  myself,  was  tired  of  the  idle 
yet  restless  pomp  of  the  last  six  weeks ;  and  we  rejoiced  in 
the  quiet  of  our  happy  home. 

On  his  return  to  Saint  Cloud,  Bonaparte  and  Mme.  Bona- 
parte received  complimentary  addresses  from  the  Corps  Le- 
gislatif ,  the  tribunals,  etc. ;  the  First  Consul  also  received  a 
visit  from  the  Corps  Diplomatique.  Shortly  after  this,  he 
enhanced  the  dignity  of  the  Legion  of  Honor  by  appointing 
M.  de  Lacepede  its  Chancellor.  Since  the  fall  of  Bonaparte, 
certain  liberal  writers,  and  among  others  Mme.  de  Stael,  have 
endeavored  to  stigmatize  that  institution  by  reviving  the  re- 
collection of  an  English  caricature  which  represented  Bona- 
parte cutting  up  the  bonnet  rouge  of  the  Revolution  to  make 
the  crosses  of  the  Legion.  But,  if  he  had  not  misused  that 
institution  as  he  misused  everything,  there  would  have  been 
nothing  to  blame  in  the  invention  of  a  recompense  which 
was  an  inducement  to  every  kind  of  merit,  without  being  a 
great  expense  to  the  State.  What  splendid  deeds  on  the 
battle-field  has  that  little  bit  of  ribbon  inspired !  If  it  had 
been  accorded  to  merit  only  in  every  walk  of  life,  if  it  had 
never  been  given  from  motives  of  caprice  or  individual  fa- 
vor, it  would  have  been  a  fine  idea  to  assimilate  all  services 
rendered  to  the  country,  no  matter  of  what  nature,  and  to 
bestow  a  similar  decoration  upon  them  all.  The  institutions 
of  Bonaparte  in  France  ought  not  to  be  indiscriminately  con- 
demned. Most  of  them  have  a  commendable  purpose,  and 
might  have  been  made  of  advantage  to  the  nation.  But  his 
insatiable  greed  of  power  perverted  them.  So  intolerant 


90  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

was  he  of  any  obstacles,  that  he  could  not  even  endure  those 
which  arose  from  his  own  institutions,  and  he  instantly  set 
them  aside  by  an  arbitrary  decision. 

Having  in  the  course  of  this  year  (1803)  created  the  dif- 
ferent senatorships,  he  gave  a  Chancellor,  a  Treasurer,  and 
Praetors  to  the  Senate.  M.  de  Laplace  was  the  Chancellor. 
Bonaparte  honored  him  because  he  was  a  savant,  and  liked 
him  because  he  was  a  skillful  flatterer.  The  two  Praetors 
were  General  Lefebvre  and  General  Serrurier.  M.  de  Far- 
gues  *  was  the  Treasurer. 

The  Republican  year  ended  as  usual  in  the  middle  of 
September,  and  the  anniversary  of  the  Republic  was  cele- 
brated by  popular  fetes,  and  kept  with  royal  pomp  at  the 
palace  of  the  Tuileries.  We  heard  at  the  same  time  that  the 
Hanoverians,  who  had  been  conquered  by  General  Mortier, 
had  celebrated  the  First  Consul's  birthday  with  great  rejoic- 
ings. Thus,  by  degrees,  by  appearing  at  first  at  the  head 
of  all,  and  then  quite  alone,  he  accustomed  Europe  to  see 
France  in  his  person  only,  and  presented  himself  everywhere 
as  the  sole  representative  of  the  nation. 

Bonaparte,  who  well  knew  that  he  would  meet  with  re- 
sistance from  those  who  held  by  the  old  ways  of  thinking, 
applied  himself  early  and  skillfully  to  gain  the  young,  to 
whom  he  opened  all  the  doors  of  advancement  in  life.  He 
attached  auditors  to  the  different  ministries,  and  gave  free 
scope  to  ambition,  whether  in  military  or  in  civil  careers. 
He  often  said  that  he  preferred  to  every  other  advantage  that 
of  governing  a  new  people,  and  the  youthful  generation  af- 
forded him  that  novelty. 

The  institution  of  the  jury  was  also  discussed  in  that 
year.  I  have  heard  that  Bonaparte  himself  had  no  liking  for 
it ;  but,  as  he  intended  later  on  to  govern  rather  by  himself 
than  with  the  assistance  of  assemblies  which  he  feared,  he 
was  obliged  to  make  some  concessions  to  their  most  distin- 
guished members.  By  degrees,  all  the  laws  were  presented 

*  M.  de  Fargues  had  been  useful  to  Bonaparte  on  the  18th  Brumaire. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  AN"  INVASION.  91 

to  the  Council  by  the  ministers,  and  were  either  changed 
into  decrees,  which,  without  any  other  sanction,  were  put  in 
force  from  one  end  of  France  to  the  other  ;  or  else,  having 
been  received  with  the  silent  approbation  of  the  Corps  Legis- 
latif ,  they  were  passed  with  no  more  trouble  than  that  im- 
posed upon  reporters  of  the  Council,  who  had  to  preface 
them  by  a  discourse,  so  that  they  might  have  some  show  of 
necessity.  Lyceums  were  also  established  in  all  the  impor- 
tant towns,  and  the  study  of  ancient  languages,  which  had 
been  abolished  during  the  Revolution,  was  again  made  obli- 
gatory in  public  education. 

It  was  at  this  time  that  the  flotilla  of  flat-bottomed  boats 
which  was  to  be  used  for  the  invasion  of  England  was  being 
constructed.  Day  by  day  it  was  more  confidently  asserted 
that  in  fine  weather  it  would  be  possible  for  the  flotilla  to 
reach  the  shores  of  England  without  being  impeded  by  ships 
of  war.  It  was  said  that  Bonaparte  himself  would  command 
the  expedition,  and  such  an  enterprise  did  not  seem  to  be  be- 
yond the  bounds  of  his  daring  or  of  his  good  fortune.  Our 
newspapers  represented  England  as  agitated  and  alarmed, 
and  in  reality  the  English  Government  was  not  quite  exempt 
from  fear  on  the  subject.  The  "  Moniteur  "  still  complained 
bitterly  of  the  English  liberal  journals,  and  the  gauntlet  of 
wordy  war  was  taken  up  on  both  sides.  In  France  the  law 
of  conscription  was  put  in  action,  and  large  bodies  of  troops 
were  raised.  Sometimes  people  asked  what  was  the  mean- 
ing of  this  great  armament,  and  of  such  paragraphs  as  the 
following,  which  appeared  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  :  "  The  Eng- 
lish journalists  suspect  that  the  great  preparations  for  war, 
which  the  First  Consul  has  just  commenced  in  Italy,  are  in- 
tended for  an  Egyptian  expedition." 

No  explanation  was  given.  The  French  nation  placed 
confidence  in  Bonaparte  of  a  kind  like  that  which  some 
credulous  minds  feel  in  magic ;  and,  as  his  success  was  be- 
lieved to  be  infallible,  it  was  not  difficult  to  obtain  a  tacit 
consent  to  all  his  operations  from  a  people  naturally  prone 


92  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

to  worship  success.  At  that  time  a  few  wise  heads  began  to 
perceive  that  he  would  not  be  useful  to  us ;  but,  as  the  gen- 
eral dread  of  the  Revolutionary  Government  still  proclaimed 
him  to  be  necessary,  no  opposition  could  be  made  to  his  au- 
thority without  the  risk  of  facilitating  the  revolt  of  that 
party,  which  it  was  believed  he  alone  could  control. 

In  the  mean  time  he  was  always  active  and  energetic ; 
and,  as  it  did  not  suit  him  that  the  public  mind  should  be 
left  to  repose,  which  leads  to  reflection,  he  aroused  appre- 
hension and  disturbance  in  every  way  that  might  be  useful 
to  himself.  A  letter  from  the  Comte  d'Artois,  taken  from 
the  "  Morning  Chronicle,"  was  printed  about  this  time ;  it 
offered  the  services  of  the  emigres  to  the  King  of  England, 
in  case  of  a  descent  upon  his  coasts.  Rumors  were  spread 
of  certain  attempts  made  in  the  eastern  departments ;  and 
since  the  war  in  La  Yendee  had  been  followed  by  the  in- 
glorious proceedings  of  the  Chouans,  people  had  become 
accustomed  to  the  idea  that  any  political  movement  set  on 
foot  in  that  part  of  France  had  pillage  and  incendiarism  for 
its  objects.  In  fact,  there  seemed  no  chance  of  quietness 
except  in  the  duration  of  the  established  Government ;  and 
when  certain  friends  of  liberty  deplored  its  loss — for  the 
new  liberal  institutions  were  of  little  value  in  their  eyes  be- 
cause they  were  the  work  of  absolute  power — they  were  met 
with  the  following  argument,  which  was  perhaps  justified 
by  circumstances  :  "  After  the  storm  through  which  we  have 
passed,  and  amid  the  strife  of  so  many  parties,  superior  force 
only  can  give  us  liberty ;  and,  so  long  as  that  force  tends  to 
promote  principles  of  order  and  morality,  we  ought  not  to 
regard  ourselves  as  straying  from  the  right  road ;  for  the 
creator  will  disappear,  but  that  which  he  has  created  will 
remain  with  us." 

While  more  or  less  disturbance  was  thus  kept  up  by  his 
orders,  Bonaparte  himself  maintained  a  peaceful  attitude. 
He  had  returned  to  his  usual  orderly  and  busy  life  at  Saint 
Cloud,  and  we  passed  our  days  as  I  have  already  described. 


MARRIAGE  OF  MADAME  LECLERC.  93 

His  brothers  were  all  employed  * — Joseph,  at  the  camp  of 
Boulogne ;  Louis,  at  the  Council  of  State ;  Jerome,  the 
youngest,  in  America,  whither  he  had  been  sent,  and  where 
he  was  well  received  by  the  Anglo-Americans.  Bonaparte's 
sisters,  who  were  now  in  the  enjoyment  of  wealth,  vied  with 
each  other  in  the  decoration  of  the  houses  which  the  First 
Consul  had  given  them,  and  in  the  luxury  of  their  furni- 
ture and  equipment.  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  occupied  him- 
self exclusively  in  his  military  duties ;  his  sister  lived  a  dull 
and  quiet  life. 

Mme.  Leclerc  had  inspired  Prince  Borghese  (who  had 
not  long  arrived  in  France  from  Rome)  with  an  ardent 
attachment,  which  she  returned.  The  Prince  asked  her 
hand  of  Bonaparte,  but  his  demand  was  at  first  refused.  I 
do  not  know  what  the  motive  of  his  refusal  was,  but  think 
it  may  perhaps  have  been  dictated  by  his  vanity,  which 
would  have  been  hurt  by  the  supposition  that  he  desired  to 
be  relieved  of  any  family  claims  ;  and  probably,  also,  he  did 
not  wish  to  appear  to  accept  a  first  proposal  with  alacrity. 
But,  as  the  liaison  between  his  sister  and  the  Prince  became 
publicly  known,  the  Consul  consented  at  last  to  legitimize  it 
by  a  marriage,  which  took  place  at  Mortefontaine  while  he 
was  at  Boulogne. 

He  set  out  to  visit  the  camp  and  the  flotilla  on  the  3d  of 
November,  1803.  This  time  his  journey  was  of  an  entirely 
military  character.  He  was  accompanied  only  by  the  gen- 
erals of  his  guard,  by  his  aides-de-camp,  and  by  M.  de  Re- 
musat. 

When  they  arrived  at  Pont  de  Briques,  a  little  village 
about  a  league  from  Boulogne,  where  Bonaparte  had  fixed 
his  headquarters,  my  husband  fell  dangerously  ill.  So  soon 
as  I  heard  of  his  illness  I  set  out  to  join  him,  and  arrived  at 
Pont  de  Briques  in  the  middle  of  the  night.  Entirely  occu- 
pied by  my  anxiety,  I  had  thought  of  nothing  but  of  the 

*  It  was  at  the  end  of  the  autumn  or  the  beginning  of  winter,  in  1803,  that 
Lucien  married  Mme.  Jouberthon  and  quarreled  with  his  brother. 


94:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

state  in  which  I  should  find  the  invalid.  But,  when  I  got 
out  of  the  carriage,  I  was  rather  disconcerted  by  finding 
myself  alone  in  the  midst  of  a  camp,  and  not  knowing  what 
the  First  Consul  would  think  of  my  arrival.  I  was  reassured, 
however,  by  the  servants,  who  told  me  I  was  expected,  and 
that  a  room  had  been  set  apart  for  me  two  days  before.  I 
passed  the  remainder  of  the  night  there,  waiting  until  day- 
light before  I  saw  my  husband,  as  I  did  not  like  to  risk  dis- 
turbing him.  I  found  him  greatly  pulled  down  by  illness, 
but  he  was  so  rejoiced/  to  see  me  that  I  congratulated  myself 
on  having  come  without  asking  permission. 

In  the  morning  Bonaparte  sent  for  me.  I  was  so  agitated 
that  I  could  hardly  speak.  He  saw  this  the  moment  I  en- 
tered the  room,  and  he  kissed  me,  made  me  sit  down,  and 
restored  me  to  composure  by  his  first  words.  "  I  was  expect- 
ing you,"  he  said.  "  Your  presence  will  cure  your  husband." 
At  these  words  I  burst  into  tears.  He  appeared  touched, 
and  endeavored  to  console  me.  Then  he  directed  me  to 
come  every  day  to  dine  and  breakfast  with  him,  laughing  as 
he  said,  "  I  must  look  after  a  woman  of  your  age  among  so 
many  soldiers."  He  asked  me  how  I  had  left  his  wife.  A 
little  while  before  his  departure  some  more  secret  visits  from 
Mile.  Georges  had  given  rise  to  fresh  domestic  disagreements. 
"  She  troubles  herself,"  he  said,  "  a  great  deal  more  than  is 
necessary.  Josephine  is  always  afraid  that  I  shall  fall  seri- 
ously in  love.  Does  she  not  know,  then,  that  I  am  not  made 
for  love  ?  For  what  is  love  ?  A  passion  which  sets  all  the 
universe  on  one  side,  and  on  the  other  the  beloved  object. 
I  certainly  am  not  of  a  nature  to  give  myself  up  to  any  such 
exclusive  feeling.  What,  then,  do  these  fancies,  into  which 
my  affections  do  not  enter,  matter  to  her  ?  This,"  he  con- 
tinued, looking  at  me  seriously,  "  is  what  her  friends  ought 
to  dwell  upon ;  and,  above  all,  they  ought  not  to  try  to  in- 
crease their  influence  over  her  by  fostering  her  jealousy." 
There  was  in  his  last  words  a  tone  of  suspicion  and  severity 
which  I  did  not  deserve,  and  I  think  he  knew  that  very 


ILLNESS  OF  M.  DE  KfiMUSAT.  95 

well ;  but  lie  never  missed  an  opportunity  of  carrying  out 
his  favorite  system,  which  was  to  keep  one's  mind  what  he 
called  "  breathless  " ;  that  is  to  say,  constantly  anxious. 

He  remained  at  Pont  de  Briques  for  ten  days  after  I  ar- 
rived there.  My  husband's  malady  was  a  painful  one,  but 
the  doctors  were  not  alarmed.  With  the  exception  of  one 
quarter  of  an  hour  during  which  the  First  Consul's  break- 
fast lasted,  I  spent  the  morning  with  my  dear  invalid.  Bona- 
parte went  to  the  camp  every  day,  reviewed  the  troops, 
visited  the  flotilla,  and  assisted  at  some  slight  skirmishes,  or 
rather  at  an  exchange  of  cannon-balls,  between  us  and  the 
English,  who  constantly  cruised  in  front  of  the  harbor  and 
tried  to  molest  our  workmen. 

At  six  o'clock  Bonaparte  returned,  and  then  I  was  sum- 
moned. Occasionally  some  of  the  officers  of  his  household, 
the  Minister  of  Marine  or  the  Minister  of  Public  Works, 
who  had  accompanied  him,  were  invited  to  dinner.  At 
other  times  we  dined  tete-d-tete,  and  then  he  talked  on  a 
multitude  of  subjects.  He  spoke  of  his  own  character,  and 
described  himself  as  having  always  been  of  a  melancholy 
temperament — far  more  so  than  any  of  his  comrades.  My 
memory  has  faithfully  preserved  all  he  said  to  me.  The 
following  is  a  correct  summary  of  it : 

"  I  was  educated,"  he  said,  "  at  a  military  school,  and  I 
showed  no  aptitude  for  anything  but  the  exact  sciences. 
Every  one  said  of  me,  ( That  child  will  never  be  good  for 
anything  but  geometry.'  I  kept  aloof  from  my  schoolfel- 
lows. I  had  chosen  a  little  corner  in  the  school-grounds, 
where  I  would  sit  and  dream  at  my  ease ;  for  I  have  always 
liked  reverie.  When  my  companions  tried  to  usurp  posses- 
sion of  this  corner,  I  defended  it  with  all  my  might.  I  al- 
ready knew  by  instinct  that  my  will  was  to  override  that  of 
others,  and  that  what  pleased  me  was  to  belong  to  me.  I 
was  not  liked  at  school.  It  takes  time  to  make  one's  self 
liked ;  and,  even  when  I  had  nothing  to  do,  I  always  felt 

vaguely  that  I  had  no  time  to  lose. 
5      J       10 


96  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

"  I  entered  the  service,  and  soon  grew  tired  of  garrison 
work.  I  began  to  read  novels,  and  they  interested  me  deep- 
ly. I  even  tried  to  write  some.  This  occupation  brought 
out  something  in  my  imagination  which  mingled  itself  with 
the  positive  knowledge  I  had  acquired ;  and  I  often  let  my- 
self dream,  in  order  that  I  might  afterward  measure  my 
dreams  by  the  compass  of  my  reason.  I  threw  myself  into 
an  ideal  world,  and  I  endeavored  to  find  out  in  what  precise 
points  it  differed  from  the  actual  world  in  which  I  lived.  I 
have  always  liked  analysis ;  and,  if  I  were  to  be  seriously  in 
love,  I  should  analyze  my  love  bit  by  bit.  Why  f  and  How  f 
are  questions  so  useful  that  they  can  not  be  too  often  asked. 
I  conquered,  rather  than  studied,  history ;  that  is  to  say,  I 
did  not  care  to  retain,  and  did  not  retain,  anything  that  could 
not  give  me  a  new  idea ;  I  disdained  all  that  was  useless,  but 
took  possession  of  certain  results  which  pleased  me. 

"  I  did  not  understand  much  about  the  Revolution,  but  I 
approved  of  it.  Equality,  which  was  to  elevate  myself,  at- 
tracted me.  On  the  20th  of  June  I  was  in  Paris,  and  I  saw 
the  populace  marching  upon  the  Tuileries.  I  have  never 
liked  popular  movements,  and  I  was  indignant  at  the  violent 
deeds  of  that  day.  I  thought  the  ringleaders  in  the  attack 
very  imprudent,  for  I  said  to  myself, ( It  is  not  they  who  will 
profit  by  this  revolution.'  But,  when  I  was  told  that  Louis 
had  put  the  red  cap  on  his  head,  I  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  he  had  ceased  to  reign ;  for  in  politics  there  is  no  resur- 
rection. 

"  On  the  10th  of  August  I  felt  that,  had  I  been  called 
upon,  I  would  have  defended  the  King.  I  set  myself  against 
those  who  founded  the  Republic  by  the  people.  Besides,  I 
saw  men  in  plain  clothes  attacking  men  in  uniform,  and  I 
could  not  stand  that. 

"  One  evening  I  was  at  the  theatre ;  it  was  the  12th  Ven- 
de*miaire.  I  heard  it  said  about  me  that  next  day  du  train 
might  be  looked  for.  You  know  that  was  the  usual  expres- 
sion of  the  Parisians,  who  regarded  the  various  changes  of 


CONVERSATIONS   WITH  FIRST  CONSUL.  97 

government  with  indifference,  as  those  changes  did  not  dis- 
turb their  business,  their  pleasures,  or  even  their  dinners. 
After  the  Terror,  people  were  satisfied  with  anything,  so 
that  they  were  allowed  to  live  quietly. 

"  I  heard  it  said  that  the  Assembly  was  sitting  in  per- 
manence ;  I  went  there,  and  found  all  confusion  and  hesita- 
tion. Suddenly  I  heard  a  voice  say  from  the  middle  of  the 
hall,  '  If  any  one  here  knows  the  address  of  General  Bona- 
parte, he  is  begged  to  go  and  tell  him  that  he  is  expected  at 
the  Committee  of  the  Assembly.'  I  have  always  observed 
with  interest  how  chance  interferes  in  certain  events,  and 
this  chance  decided  me.  I  went  to  the  Committee. 

"There  I  found  several  terrified  deputies,  Cambaceres 
among  others.  They  expected  to  be  attacked  the  next  day, 
and  they  could  not  come  to  any  resolution.  They  asked  my 
advice ;  I  answered  by  asking  for  guns.  This  proposition  so 
alarmed  them  that  the  whole  night  passed  without  their  com- 
ing to  any  decision.  In  the  morning  there  was  very  bad 
news.  Then  they  put  the  whole  business  into  my  hands, 
and  afterward  began  to  discuss  whether  they  had  the  right 
to  repel  force  by  force.  '  Are  you  going  to  wait,'  I  asked 
them,  *  until  the  people  give  you  permission  to  fire  upon 
them  ?  I  am  committed  in  this  matter ;  you  have  appointed 
me  to  defend  you ;  it  is  right  that  you  should  leave  me  to 
act.'  Thereupon  I  left  these  lawyers  to  stultify  themselves 
with  words.  I  put  the  troops  in  motion,  and  pointed  two 
cannons  with  terrible  effect  from  Saint  Koch ;  the  army  of 
citizens  and  the  conspirators  were  swept  away  in  an  instant. 

"  But  I  had  shed  Parisian  blood !  "What  sacrilege !  It 
was  necessary  to  obliterate  the  effect  of  such  a  deed.  I  felt 
myself  more  and  more  urgently  called  upon  to  do  something. 
I  asked  for  the  command  of  the  army  of  Italy.  Everything 
had  to  be  put  in  order  in  that  army,  both  men  and  things. 
Only  youth  can  have  patience,  because  it  has  the  future 
before  it.  I  set  out  for  Italy  with  ill-trained  soldiers,  who 
were,  however,  full  of  zeal  and  daring.  In  the  midst  of  the 


98  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  EfiMUSAT. 

troops  I  had  wagons  placed,  and  escorted  on  the  march,  al- 
though they  were  empty.  These  I  called  the  treasure-chests 
of  the  army.  I  put  it  in  the  order  of  the  day  that  shoes 
should  be  distributed  to  the  recruits:  no  one  would  wear 
them.  I  promised  my  soldiers  that  fortune  and  glory  should 
await  us  behind  the  Alps;  I  kept  my  word,  and  ever  since 
then  the  army  would  follow  me  to  the  end  of  the  world. 

"  I  made  a  splendid  campaign ;  I  became  a  person  of  im- 
portance in  Europe.  On  the  one  hand,  with  the  assistance 
of  my  orders  of  the  day,  I  maintained  the  revolutionary  sys- 
tem ;  on  the  other  hand,  I  secretly  conciliated  the  emigres 
by  allowing  them  to  form  certain  hopes.  It  is  easy  to  de- 
ceive that  party,  because  it  starts  always  not  from  what  exists, 
but  from  what  it  wishes  to  believe.  I  received  magnificent 
offers  of  recompense  if  I  would  follow  the  example  of  General 
Monk ;  the  Pretender  even  wrote  to  me  in  his  vague  and 
florid  style ;  I  conquered  the  Pope  more  effectually  by  not 
going  to  Rome  than  if  I  had  burned  his  capital.  In  short, 
I  became  important  and  formidable ;  and  the  Directory,  al- 
though I  made  them  very  uneasy,  could  not  bring  any  formal 
accusation  against  me. 

"  I  have  been  reproached  with  having  favored  the  18th 
Fructidor ;  they  might  as  well  reproach  me  with  having  sup- 
ported the  Revolution.  It  was  necessary  to  take  advantage 
of  the  Revolution,  and  to  derive  some  profit  from  the  blood 
that  had  been  shed.  What !  were  we  to  give  ourselves  up 
unconditionally  to  the  princes  of  the  house  of  Bourbon,  who 
would  have  thrown  in  our  teeth  all  the  misfortunes  we  had 
suffered  since  their  departure,  and  would  have  imposed  si- 
lence upon  us,  because  we  had  solicited  their  return  ?  Were 
we  to  exchange  our  victorious  flag  for  that  white  banner 
which  had  mingled  with  the  standards  of  our  enemies  ?  Was 
I  to  content  myself  with  a  few  millions  and  a  petty  duke- 
dom ?  The  part  of  Monk  is  not  a  difficult  one  to  play ;  it 
would  have  given  me  less  trouble  than  the  Egyptian  cam- 
paign, or  even  than  the  18th  Brumaire;  but  can  anything 


CONVERSATIONS   WITH  FIRST  CONSUL.  99 

teach  princes  who  have  never  seen  a  battle-field  ?  To  what 
did  the  return  of  Charles  II.  lead  the  English,  except  the  de- 
thronement of  James  II.  ?  Had  it  been  necessary,  I  should 
certainly  have  dethroned  the  Bourbons  a  second  time,  so  that 
the  best  thing  they  could  have  done  would  have  been  to  get 
rid  of  me. 

"  "When  I  returned  to  France,  I  found  public  opinion  in 
a  lethargic  condition.  In  Paris — and  Paris  is  France — peo- 
ple can  never  interest  themselves  in  things  if  they  do  not 
care  about  persons.  The  customs  of  an  old  monarchy  had 
taught  them  to  personify  everything.  This  habit  of  mind  is 
bad  for  a  people  who  desire  liberty  seriously ;  but  French- 
men can  no  longer  desire  anything  seriously,  except  perhaps 
it  be  equality ;  and  even  that  they  would  renounce  willingly 
if  every  one  could  flatter  himself  that  he  was  the  first.  To 
be  equals,  with  everybody  uppermost,  is  the  secret  of  the 
vanity  of  all  of  you ;  every  man  among  you  must,  therefore, 
be  given  the  hope  of  rising.  The  great  difficulty  of  the  Di- 
rectory was  that  no  one  cared  about  them,  and  that  people 
began  to  care  a  good  deal  about  me. 

"  I  do  not  know  what  would  have  happened  to  me  had  I 
not  conceived  the  happy  thought  of  going  to  Egypt.  When 
I  embarked  I  did  not  know  but  that  I  might  be  bidding  an 
eternal  farewell  to  France ;  but  I  had  no  doubt  that  she 
would  recall  me.  The  charm  of  Oriental  conquest  drew  my 
thoughts  away  from  Europe  more  than  I  should  have  believed 
possible.  My  imagination  interfered  this  time  again  with  my 
actions ;  but  I  think  it  died  out  at  Saint  Jean  d' Acre.  How- 
ever that  may  be,  I  shall  never  allow  it  to  interfere  with  me 
again. 

"  In  Egypt  I  found  myself  free  from  the  wearisome  re- 
straints of  civilization.  I  dreamed  all  sorts  of  things,  and  I 
saw  how  all  that  I  dreamed  might  be  realized.  I  created  a 
religion.  I  pictured  myself  on  the  road  to  Asia,  mounted  on 
an  elephant,  with  a  turban  on  my  head,  and  in  my  hand  a 
new  Koran,  which  I  should  compose  according  to  my  own 


100  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

ideas.  I  would  have  the  combined  experience  of  two  worlds 
to  set  about  my  enterprise ;  I  was  to  have  ransacked,  for  my 
own  advantage,  the  whole  domain  of  history ;  I  was  to  have 
attacked  the  English  power  in  India,  and  renewed  my  rela- 
tions with  old  Europe  by  my  conquest.  The  time  which  I 
passed  in  Egypt  was  the  most  delightful  part  of  my  life,  for 
it  was  the  most  ideal.  Fate  decided  against  my  dreams ;  I 
received  letters  from  France ;  I  saw  that  there  was  not  a 
moment  to  lose.  I  reverted  to  the  realities  of  life,  and  I 
returned  to  Paris — to  Paris,  where  the  gravest  interests  of 
the  country  are  discussed  in  the  entr'acte  of  an  opera. 

"  The  Directory  trembled  at  my  return.  I  was  very  cau- 
tious ;  that  is  one  of  the  epochs  of  my  life  in  which  I  have 
acted  with  the  soundest  judgment.  I  saw  the  Abbe  Sieyes, 
and  promised  him  that  his  verbose  constitution  should  be  put 
into  effect ;  I  received  the  chiefs  of  the  Jacobins  and  the 
agents  of  the  Bourbons;  I  listened  to  advice  from  every- 
body, but  I  only  gave  it  in  the  interest  of  my  own  plans.  I 
hid  myself  from  the  people,  because  I  knew  that  when  the 
time  came  curiosity  to  see  me  would  make  them  run  after 
me.  Every  one  was  taken  in  my  toils  ;  and,  when  I  became 
the  head  of  the  State,  there  was  not  a  party  in  France  which 
did  not  build  some  special  hope  upon  my  success." 


CHAPTEE   IV. 

(1803-1804.) 

Continuation  of  the  First  Consul's  Conversations  at  Boulogne — Reading  of  the 
Tragedy  of  "Philippe  Auguste"— My  new  Impressions— Return  to  Paris— 
Mme.  Bonaparte's  Jealousy  —  Winter  Fetes  of  1804— M.  de  Fontanes— M. 
Fouche"— Savary— Pichegru— Arrest  of  General  Moreau. 

ONE  evening,  while  we  were  at  Boulogne,  Bonaparte 
turned  the  conversation  upon  literature.  Lemercier,  the 
poet,  whom  Bonaparte  liked,  had  just  finished  a  tragedy, 
called  "  Philippe  Auguste,"  which  contained  allusions  to  the 
First  Consul,  and  had  brought  the  manuscript  to  him.  Bo- 
naparte took  it  into  his  head  to  read  this  production  aloud  to 
me.  It  was  amusing  to  hear  a  man,  who  was  always  in  a 
hurry  when  he  had  nothing  to  do,  trying  to  read  Alexandrine 
verses,  of  which  he  did  not  know  the  meter,  and  pronouncing 
them  so  badly  that  he  did  not  seem  to  understand  what  he 
read.  Besides,  he  no  sooner  opened  any  book  than  he  wanted 
to  criticise  it.  I  asked  him  to  give  me  the  manuscript,  and 
I  read  it  out  myself.  Then  he  began  to  talk ;  he  took  the 
play  out  of  my  hand,  struck  out  whole  passages,  made  several 
marginal  notes,  and  found  fault  with  the  plot  and  the  char- 
acters. He  did  not  run  much  risk  of  spoiling  the  piece,  for 
it  was  very  bad.*  Singularly  enough,  when  he  had  done 
reading,  he  told  me  he  did  not  wish  the  author  to  know  that 
all  these  erasures  and  corrections  were  made  by  so  important 
a  hand,  and  he  directed  me  to  take  them  upon  myself.  I 
objected  to  this,  as  may  be  supposed.  I  had  great  difficulty 

*  This  piece  was  never  acted,  nor,  I  believe,  printed.— P.  R. 


102  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

in  convincing  him  that,  as  it  might  be  thought  strange  that 
even  he  should  thus  have  meddled  with  an  author's  manu- 
script, it  would  be  contrary  to  all  the  convenances  for  me  to 
have  taken  such  a  liberty.  "  Well,  well,"  said  he,  "  perhaps 
you  are  right ;  but  on  this,  as  on  every  other  occasion,  I  own 
I  do  not  like  that  vague  and  leveling  phrase,  the  convenances, 
which  you  women  are  always  using.  It  is  a  device  of  fools 
to  raise  themselves  to  the  level  of  people  of  intellect ;  a  sort 
of  social  gag,  which  obstructs  the  strong  mind  and  only  serves 
the  weak.  It  may  be  all  very  well  for  women :  they  have 
not  much  to  do  in  this  life ;  but  you  must  be  aware  that  I, 
for  example,  can  not  be  bound  by  the  convenances? 

"  But,"  I  replied,  "  is  not  the  application  of  these  laws  to 
the  conduct  of  life  like  that  of  the  dramatic  unities  to  the 
drama?  They  give  order  and  regularity,  and  they  do  not 
really  trammel  genius,  except  when  it  would,  without  their 
control,  err  against  good  taste." 

"  Ah,  good  taste !  That  is  another  of  those  classical 
words  which  I  do  not  adopt.*  It  is  perhaps  my  own  fault, 
but  there  are  certain  rules  which  mean  nothing  to  me.  For 
example,  what  is  called  '  style,'  good  or  bad,  does  not  affect 
me.  I  care  only  for  the  force  of  the  thought.  I  used  to 
like  Ossian,  but  it  was  for  the  same  reason  which  made  me 
delight  in  the  murmur  of  the  winds  and  waves.  In  Egypt 
I  tried  to  read  the  '  Iliad ' ;  but  I  got  tired  of  it.  As  for 
French  poets,  I  understand  none  of  them  except  Corneille. 
That  man  understood  politics,  and  if  he  had  been  trained  to 
public  afMrs  he  would  have  been  a  statesman.  I  think  I 
appreciate  him  more  truly  than  any  one  else  does,  because  I 
exclude  all  the  dramatic  sentiments  from  my  view  of  him. 
For  example,  it  is  only  lately  I  have  come  to  understand  the 
denouement  of  i  Cinna.'  At  first  I  regarded  it  as  merely  a 
contrivance  for  a  pathetic  fifth  act;  for  really,  clemency, 

*  M.  de  Talleyrand  once  said  to  the  Emperor,  "  Good  taste  is  your  personal 
enemy ;  if  you  could  have  got  rid  of  it  by  cannon-balls,  it  would  long  ago  have 
ceased  to  exist." 


MY  NEW  IMPRESSIONS.  103 

properly  speaking,  is  such  a  poor  little  virtue,  when  it  is  not 
founded  on  policy,  that  to  turn  Augustus  suddenly  into  a 
kind-hearted  prince  appeared  to  me  an  unworthy  climax. 
However,  I  saw  Monvel  act  in  the  tragedy  one  night,  and 
the  mystery  of  the  great  conception  was  revealed  to  me.  He 
pronounced  the  'Soyons  amis,  Cinna,'  in  so  cunning  and 
subtle  a  tone,  that  I  saw  at  once  the  action  was  only  a  feint 
of  the  tyrant,  and  I  approved  as  a  calculation  what  had  ap- 
peared to  me  silly  as  a  sentiment.  The  line  should  always 
be  so  delivered  that,  of  all  those  who  hear  it,  only  Cinna  is 
deceived. 

"  As  for  Racine,  he  pleases  me  in c  Iphigenie.'  That  piece, 
while  it  lasts,  makes  one  breathe  the  poetic  air  of  Greece. 
In  '  Britannicus '  he  has  been  trammeled  by  Tacitus,  against 
whom  I  am  prejudiced,  because  he  does  not  sufficiently  ex- 
plain his  meaning.  The  tragedies  of  Yoltaire  are  passionate, 
but  they  do  not  go  deeply  into  human  nature.  For  instance, 
his  Mahomet  is  neither  a  prophet  nor  an  Arab.  He  is  an 
impostor,  who  might  have  been  educated  at  the  ICcole  Poly- 
technique,  for  he  uses  power  as  I  might  use  it  in  an  age  like 
the  present.  And  then,  the  murder  of  the  father  by  the  son 
is  a  useless  crime. "  Great  men  are  never  cruel  except  from 
necessity. 

u  As  for  comedy,  it  interests  me  about  as  much  as  the 
gossip  of  your  drawing-rooms.  I  understand  your  admira- 
tion of  Moliere,  but  I  do  not  share  it ;  he  has  placed  his  per- 
sonages in  situations  which  have  no  attractions  for  me." 

From  these  observations  it  is  plain  that  Bonaparte  cared 
only  to  observe  human  nature  when  it  was  struggling  with 
the  great  chances  of  life,  and  that  man  in  the  abstract  inter- 
ested him  but  little.  In  conversations  of  this  kind  the  time 
I  spent  at  Boulogne  with  the  First  Consul  was  passed,  and  it 
was  at  the  close  of  my  sojourn  there  that  I  underwent  the 
first  experience  that  inspired  me  with  mistrust  of  persons 
among  whom  I  was  obliged  to  live  at  Court.  The  officers 
of  the  household  could  not  believe  that  a  woman  might  re- 


104:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  M&MU8AT. 

main  for  hours  together  with  their  master,  simply  talking 
with  him  on  matters  of  general  interest,  and  they  drew  con- 
clusions which  were  injurious  to  my  character.  I  may  now 
venture  to  say  that  the  purity  of  my  mind,  and  my  life-long 
attachment  to  my  husband,  prevented  my  even  conceiving 
the  possibility  of  such  a  suspicion  as  that  which  was  formed 
in  the  Consul's  ante-chamber,  while  I  was  conversing  with 
him  in  his  salon.  When  Bonaparte  returned  to  Paris,  his 
aides-de-camp  talked  about  my  long  interviews  with  him,  and 
Mme.  Bonaparte  took  fright  at  their  stories ;  so  that  when, 
after  a  month's  stay  at  Pont  de  Briques,  my  husband  was  suf- 
ficiently recovered  to  bear  the  journey,  and  we  returned  to 
Paris,  my  jealous  patroness  received  me  coldly. 

I  returned  full  of  gratitude  toward  the  First  Consul.  He 
had  received  me  so  kindly ;  he  had  shown  such  interest  in 
the  state  of  my  husband's  health  ;  his  attention  to  me  had  so 
much  soothed  my  troubled  and  anxious  mind,  and  had  been 
so  great  a  resource  in  that  solitary  place ;  and  I  was  so  much 
flattered  by  the  pleasure  he  seemed  to  take  in  my  society, 
that  on  my  return  I  told  every  one,  with  the  eager  gratitude 
of  one  twenty-three  years  old,  of  the  extreme  kindness  he 
had  shown  me.  My  friend,  who  was  rea"lly  attached  to  me, 
advised  me  to  be  careful  of  my  words,  and  apprised  me  of 
the  impression  they  had  made.  I  remember  to  this  hour  that 
her  hint  struck  like  a  dagger  to  my  heart.  It  was  the  first 
time  I  had  suffered  injustice ;  my  youth  and  all  my  feelings 
revolted  against  such  an  accusation.  Stern  experience  only 
can  steel  us  against  the  unjust  judgments  of  the  world,  and 
perhaps  we  ought  to  regret  the  time  when  they  had  the  pow- 
er to  wound  us  deeply.  My  friend's  warning  had,  however, 
explained  Mme.  Bonaparte's  conduct  toward  me.  One  day, 
when  I  was  more  hurt  by  this  than  usual,  I  could  not  refrain 
from  saying  to  her,  with  tears  in  my  eyes,  "  What,  madame  ! 
do  you  suspect  me  ? "  As  she  was  very  kind  and  always 
easily  touched  by  passing  emotions,  she  embraced  me,  and 
thenceforth  treated  me  with  her  former  cordiality.  But  she 


MADAME  BONAPARTE'S  JEALOUSY.  105 

did  not  understand  my  feelings.  There  was  nothing  in  her 
mind  which  corresponded  to  my  just  indignation ;  and,  with- 
out endeavoring  to  ascertain  whether  my  relations  with  her 
husband  at  Bolougne  had  been  such  as  they  were  represented 
to  her,  she  was  content  to  conclude  that  in  any  case  the  affair 
had  been  merely  temporary,  since  I  did  not,  when  under  her 
own  eyes,  depart  from  my  usual  reserve  toward  Bonaparte. 
In  order  to  justify  herself,  she  told  me  that  the  Bonaparte 
family  had  spread  injurious  reports  against  me  during  my 
absence.  "  Do  you  not  perceive,"  I  asked  her,  "  that,  rightly 
or  wrongly,  it  is  believed  here  that  my  tender  attachment  to 
you,  madame,  makes  me  clear-sighted  to  what  is  going  on, 
and  that,  feeble  as  my  counsels  are,  they  may  help  you  to  act 
with  prudence  ?  Political  jealousy  spreads  suspicion  broad- 
cast everywhere,  and,  insignificant  as  I  am,  I  do  believe  they 
want  to  make  you  quarrel  with  me."  Mme.  Bonaparte  agreed 
in  the  truth  of  my  observation ;  but  she  had  not  the  least 
idea  that  I  could  feel  aggrieved  because  it  had  not  occurred 
to  herself  in  the  first  instance.  She  acknowledged  that  she 
had  reproached  her  husband  about  me,  and  he  had  evidently 
amused  himself  by  leaving  her  in  doubt.  These  occurrences 
opened  my  eyes  about  the  people  among  whom  I  lived  to  an 
extent  which  alarmed  me  and  upset  all  my  former  feelings 
toward  them.  I  began  to  feel  that  the  ground  which  I  had 
trodden  until  then  with  all  the  confidence  of  ignorance  was 
not  firm ;  I  knew  that  from  the  kind  of  annoyance  I  had  just 
experienced  I  should  never  again  be  free. 

The  First  Consul,  on  leaving  Boulogne,  had  declared,  in 
the  order  of  the  day,  that  he  was  pleased  with  the  army ; 
and  in  the  "Moniteur"  of  November  12,  1803,  we  read  the 
following  :  "  It  was  remarked  as  a  presage  that,  in  the  course 
of  the  excavations  for  the  First  Consul's  camp,  a  war  hatchet 
was  found,  which  probably  belonged  to  the  Roman  army 
that  invaded  Britain.  There  were  also  medals  of  William 
the  Conqueror  found  at  Ambleteuse,  where  the  First  Con- 
sul's -tent  was  pitched.  It  must  be  admitted  that  these  cir- 


106  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

cumstances  are  singular,  and  they  appear  still  more  strange 
when  it  is  borne  in  mind  that  when  General  Bonaparte  vis- 
ited the  ruins  of  Pelusium,  in  Egypt,  he  found  there  a  me- 
dallion of  Julius  Caesar." 

The  allusion  was  not  a  very  fortunate  one,  for,  notwith- 
standing the  medallion  of  Julius  Caesar,  Bonaparte  was 
obliged  to  leave  Egypt ;  but  these  little  parallels,  dictated 
by  the  ingenious  flattery  of  M.  Maret,  pleased  his  master 
immensely,  and  Bonaparte  was  confident  that  they  were  not 
without  effect  upon  the  country. 

In  the  journals  every  effort  was  made  at  that  time  to 
excite  the  popular  imagination  on  the  subject  of  the  invasion 
of  England.  I  do  not  know  whether  Bonaparte  really  be- 
lieved that  such  an  adventure  was  possible,  but  he  appeared 
to  do  so,  and  the  expense  incurred  in  the  construction  of  flat- 
bottomed  boats  was  considerable.  The  war  of  words  be- 
tween the  English  newspapers  and  the  "  Moniteur "  con- 
tinued. We  read  in  the  "  Times,"  "  It  is  said  that  the 
French  have  made  Hanover  a  desert,  and  they  are  now  about 
to  abandon  it "  ;  to  which  a  note  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  imme- 
diately replied,  "  Yes,  when  you  abandon  Malta."  The 
Bishops  issued  pastorals,  in  which  they  exhorted  the  nation 
to  arm  itself  for  a  just  war.  "  Choose  men  of  good  courage," 
said  the  Bishop  of  Arras,  "  and  go  forth  to  fight  Amalek. 
Bossuet  has  said,  '  To  submit  to  the  public  orders  is  to  sub- 
mit to  the  orders  of  God,  who  establishes  empires.' 5: 

This  quotation  from  Bossuet  reminds  me  of  a  story 
which  M.  Bourlier,  the  Bishop  of  Evreux,  used  to  tell.  It 
related  to  the  time  when  the  Council  was  assembled  at  Paris 
with  a  view  to  inducing  the  Bishops  to  oppose  the  decrees 
of  the  Pope.  "  Sometimes,"  said  the  Bishop  of  Evreux, 
"  the  Emperor  would  have  us  all  summoned,  and  would  be- 
gin a  theological  discussion  with  us.  He  would  address  him- 
self to  the  most  recalcitrant  among  us,  and  say,  '  My  religion 
is  that  of  Bossuet ;  he  is  my  Father  of  the  Church  ;  he  de- 
fended our  liberties.  I  want  to  commence  his  work  and  to 


WINTER  FfiTES  OF  1804.  107 

maintain  your  dignity.  Do  you  understand  me  ? '  Speak- 
ing thus,  and  pale  with  anger,  he  would  clap  his  hand  on  the 
hilt  of  his  sword.  The  ardor  with  which  he  was  ready  to 
defend  us  made  me  tremble,  and  this  singular  amalgamation 
of  the  name  of  Bossuet  and  the  word  liberty,  with  his  own 
threatening  gestures,  would  have  made  me  smile  if  I  had 
not  been  too  heavy-hearted  at  the  prospect  of  the  hard  times 
which  I  foresaw  for  the  Church." 

I  now  return  to  the  winter  of  1804.  This  winter  passed 
as  the  preceding  one  had  done,  in  balls  and  fetes  at  Court 
and  in  Paris,  and  in  the  organization  of  the  new  laws  which 
were  presented  to  the  Corps  Legislatif.  Mme.  Bacciochi, 
who  had  a  very  decided  liking  for  M.  de  Fontanes,  spoke  of 
him  so  often  at  that  time  to  her  brother,  that  her  influence, 
added  to  Bonaparte's  own  high  opinion  of  the  academician, 
determined  him  to  make  M.  de  Fontanes  President  of  the 
Corps  Legislatif.  This  selection  appeared  strange  to  some 
people ;  but  a  man  of  letters  would  do  as  well  as  any  other 
President  for  what  Bonaparte  intended  to  make  of  the  Corps 
Legislatif.  M.  de  Fontanes  had  to  deliver  harangues  to  the 
Emperor  under  most  difficult  circumstances,  but  he  always 
acquitted  himself  with  grace  and  distinction.  He  had  but 
little  strength  of  character,  but  his  ability  told  when  he  had 
to  speak  in  public,  and  his  good  taste  lent  him  dignity  and 
impressiveness.  Perhaps  that  was  not  an  advantage  for 
Bonaparte.  Nothing  is  so  dangerous  for  sovereigns  as  to 
have  their  abuses  of  power  clothed  in  the  glowing  colors  of 
eloquence,  when  they  figure  before  nations ;  and  this  is  es- 
pecially dangerous  in  France,  where  forms  are  held  in  such 
high  esteem.  How  often  have  the  Parisians,  although  in 
the  secret  of  the  farce  the  Government  was  acting,  lent  them- 
selves to  the  deception  with  a  good  grace,  simply  because 
the  actors  did  justice  to  that  delicacy  of  taste  which  de- 
mands that  each  shall  do  his  best  with  the  role  assigned 
to  him  ? 

In  the  course  of  the  month  of  January,  the  "Moniteur" 


108  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  ItfiMUSAT. 

published  a  selection  of  articles  from  the  English  journals,  in 
which  the  differences  between  Bavaria  and  Austria,  and  the 
probabilities  of  a  continental  war,  were  discussed.  Para- 
graphs of  this  kind  were  from  time  to  time  inserted  in  the 
newspapers,  without  any  comment,  as  if  to  prepare  us  for 
what  might  happen.  These  intimations — like  the  clouds 
over  mountain  summits,  which  fall  apart  for  a  moment  now 
and  then,  and  afford  a  glimpse  of  what  is  passing  behind — 
allowed  us  to  have  momentary  peeps  at  the  important  dis- 
cussions which  were  taking  place  in  Europe,  so  that  we 
should  not  be  much  surprised  when  they  resulted  in  a  rup- 
ture. After  each  glimpse  the  clouds  would  close  again,  and 
we  would  remain  in  darkness  until  the  storm  burst. 

I  am  about  to  speak  of  an  important  epoch,  concerning 
which  my  memory  is  full  and  faithful.  It  is  that  of  the 
conspiracy  of  Georges  Cadoudal,  and  the  crime  to  which  it 
led.  With  respect  to  General  Moreau,  I  shall  repeat  what  I 
have  heard  said,  but  shall  be  careful  to  affirm  nothing.  I 
think  it  well  to  preface  this  narrative  by  a  brief  explanation 
of  the  state  of  affairs  at  that  time.  Certain  persons,  some- 
what closely  connected  with  politics,  were  beginning  to  as- 
sert that  France  felt  the  necessity  of  hereditary  right  in  the 
governing  power.  Political  courtiers,  and  honest,  sincere 
revolutionists,  seeing  that  the  tranquillity  of  the  country  de- 
pended on  one  life,  were  discussing  the  instability  of  the 
Consulate.  By  degrees  the  thoughts  of  all  were  once  more 
turned  to  monarchy,  and  this  would  have  had  its  advantages 
if  they  could  have  agreed  to  establish  a  monarchy  tempered 
by  the  laws.  Revolutions  have  this  great  disadvantage,  that 
they  divide  public  opinion  into  an  infinite  number  of  varie- 
ties, which  are  all  modified  by  circumstances.  This  it  is 
which  gives  opportunity  to  that  despotism  which  comes  after 
revolutions.  To  restrain  the  power  of  Bonaparte,  it  would 
have  been  necessary  to  venture  on  uttering  the  word  "  Lib- 
erty "  ;  but  as,  only  a  few  years  before,  that  word  had  been 
used  from  one  end  of  France  to  the  other  as  a  disguise  for 


THE  JACOBINS.  109 

the  worst  kind  of  slavery,  it  inspired  an  unreasonable  but 
fatal  repugnance. 

The  Royalists,  finding  that  day  by  day  Bonaparte  was 
departing  more  widely  from  the  path  they  had  expected  he 
would  take,  were  much  disturbed.  The  Jacobins,  whose  op- 
position the  First  Consul  feared  much  more,  were  secretly 
preparing  for  action,  for  they  perceived  that  it  was  to  their 
antagonists  that  the  Government  was  giving  guarantees. 
The  Concordat,  the  advances  made  to  the  old  nobility,  the 
destruction  of  revolutionary  equality,  all  these  things  consti- 
tuted an  encroachment  upon  them.  How  happy  would 
France  have  been  had  Bonaparte  contended  only  against  the 
factions!  But,  to  have  done  that,  he  must  have  been  ani- 
mated solely  by  the  love  of  justice,  and  guided  by  the  coun- 
sels of  a  generous  mind. 

When  a  sovereign,  no  matter  what  his  title  may  be,  sides 
with  one  or  other  of  the  violent  parties  which  stir  up  civil 
strife,  it  is  certain  that  he  has  hostile  intentions  against  the 
rights  of  citizens,  who  have  confided  those  rights  to  his  keep- 
ing. Bonaparte,  in  order  to  fix  his  despotic  yoke  upon 
France,  found  himself  obliged  to  come  to  terms  with  the 
Jacobins ;  and,  unfortunately,  there  are  persons  whom  no 
guarantee  but  that  of  crime  will  satisfy.  Their  ally  must 
involve  himself  in  some  of  their  iniquities.  This  motive  had 
a  great  deal  to  do  with  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien ; 
and  I  am  convinced  that  all  which  happened  at  that  time  was 
the  result  of  no  violent  feeling,  of  no  blind  revenge,  but 
simply  of  a  Machiavellian  policy,  resolved  to  smooth  its  own 
path  at  any  cost.  Neither  was  it  for  the  gratification  of  vani- 
ty that  Bonaparte  wanted  to  change  his  title  of  Consul  for 
that  of  Emperor.  We  must  not  believe  that  he  was  always 
ruled  by  insatiable  passions ;  he  was  capable  of  controlling 
them  by  calculation,  and,  if  in  the  end  he  allowed  himself  to 
be  led  away,  it  was  because  he  became  intoxicated  by  success 
and  flattery.  The  comedy  of  republican  equality,  which  he 
was  obliged  to  play  so  long  as  he  remained  Consul,  annoyed 


110  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

him,  and  in  reality  only  deceived  those  who  were  willing  to 
be  deceived.  It  resembled  the  political  pretenses  of  ancient 
Rome,  when  the  Emperors  from  time  to  time  had  themselves 
reflected  by  the  Senate.  I  have  heard  persons  who,  having 
put  on  the  love  of  liberty  like  a  garment,  and  yet  paid  assidu- 
ous court  to  Bonaparte  while  he  was  First  Consul,  declare 
that  they  had  quite  withdrawn  their  esteem  from  him  so  soon 
as  he  conferred  the  title  of  Emperor  upon  himself.  I  never 
could  understand  their  argument.  How  was  it  possible  that 
the  authority  which  he  exercised  almost  from  the  moment  of 
his  entrance  into  the  government  did  not  enlighten  them  as 
to  his  actual  position  ?  Might  it  not  rather  be  said  that  he 
gave  a  proof  of  sincerity  in  his  assumption  of  a  title  whose 
real  powers  he  exercised  ? 

At  the  epoch  of  which  I  am  treating,  it  became  necessary 
that  the  First  Consul  should  strengthen  his  position  by  some 
new  measure.  The  English,  who  had  been  threatened,  were 
secretly  exciting  disturbances  to  act  as  diversions  from  the 
projects  formed  against  themselves ;  their  relations  with  the 
Chouans  were  resumed ;  and  the  Royalists  regarded  the  Con- 
sular Government  as  a  mere  transition  state  from  the  Direc- 
tory to  the  Monarchy.  One  man  only  stood  in  the  way ;  it 
became  easy  to  conclude  that  he  must  be  got  rid  of. 

I  remember  to  have  heard  Bonaparte  say  in  the  summer  of 
that  year  (1804)  that  for  once  events  had  hurried  him,  and 
that  he  had  not  intended  to  establish  royalty  until  two  years 
later.  He  had  placed  the  police  in  the  hands  of  the  Minis- 
ter of  Justice.  This  was  a  sound  and  moral  proceeding,  but  it 
was  contradicted  by  his  intention  that  the  magistracy  should 
use  that  police  as  it  had  been  used  when  it  was  a  revolution- 
ary institution.  I  have  already  said  that  Bonaparte's  first 
ideas  were  generally  good  and  great.  To  conceive  and  carry 
them  out  was  to  exercise  his  power,  but  to  submit  to  them 
afterward  savored  of  abdication.  .  He  was  unable  to  endure 
the  dominion  even  of  any  of  his  own  institutions.  Restrained 
by  the  slow  and  regular  forms  of  justice,  and  also  by  the 


FOUCHfi. 

feebleness  and  mediocrity  of  Ms  Chief  Judge,  he  surrounded 
himself  with  innumerable  police  agents,  and  by  degrees 
regained  confidence  in  Fouche,  who  was  an  adept  in  the  art 
of  making  himself  necessary.  Fouche,  a  man  of  keen  and 
far-seeing  intellect,  a  Jacobin  grown  rich,  and  consequently 
disgusted  with  some  of  the  principles  of  that  party — with 
which,  however,  he  still  remained  connected,  so  that  he 
might  have  support  should  trouble  arise — had  no  objection 
to  invest  Bonaparte  with  royalty.  His  natural  flexibility 
made  him  always  ready  to  accept  any  form  of  government 
in  which  he  saw  a  post  for  himself.  His  habits  were  more 
revolutionary  than  his  principles,  and  the  only  state  of  things, 
I  believe,  which  he  could  not  have  endured,  would  have  been 
one  which  should  make  an  absolute  nonentity  of  him.  To 
make  use  of  him  one  must  thoroughly  understand  his  dispo- 
sition, and  be  very  cautious  in  dealing  with  him,  remember- 
ing that  he  needed  troublous  times  for  the  full  display  of  his 
capacity ;  for,  as  he  had  no  passions  and  no  aversions,  he  rose  at 
such  times  superior  to  the  generality  of  those  about  him,  who 
were  all  more  or  less  actuated  by  either  fear  or  resentment. 

Fouche  has  denied  that  he  advised  the  murder  of  the  Due 
d'Enghien.  Unless  there  is  complete  certainty  of  the  fact,  I 
see  no  reason  for  bringing  the  accusation  of  a  crime  against  a 
man  who  positively  denies  it.  Besides,  Foiiche,  who  was 
very  far-sighted,  must  have  foreseen  that  such  a  deed  would 
give  only  a  temporary  guarantee  to  the  party  which  Bona- 
parte wanted  to  win.  He  knew  the  First  Consul  too  well  to 
fear  that  he  would  think  of  replacing  the  King  on  a  throne 
which  he  might  occupy  himself ,  and  there  is  little  doubt 
that,  with  the  information  he  possessed,  he  would  have  pro- 
nounced the  murder  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  to  be  a  mistake. 

M.  de  Talleyrand's  plans  were  also  served  by  his  advice 
that  Bonaparte  should  invest  himself  with  royalty.  That 
proceeding  would  suit  M.  de  Talleyrand  to  a  nicety.  His 
enemies,  and  even  Bonaparte  himself,  have  accused  him  of 
having  advised  the  murder  of  the  unhappy  prince.  But 


112  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

Bonaparte  and  his  enemies  are  not  credible  on  this  point ; 
the  well-known  character  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  is  against  the 
truth  of  the  statement.  He  has  said  to  me  more  than  once 
that  Bonaparte  informed  him  and  the  two  Consuls  of  the 
arrest  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  and  of  his  own  unalterable  de- 
termination at  the  same  time.  He  added  that  they  all  three 
saw  that  words  were  useless,  and  therefore  kept  silence. 
That  was  indeed  a  deplorable  weakness,  but  one  very  com- 
mon to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  would  not  think  of  remon- 
strating for  the  sake  of  conscience  only,  when  he  knew  that 
a  line  of  action  had  been  decided  upon.  Opposition  and 
bold  resistance  may  take  effect  upon  any  nature,  however 
resolute.  A  sovereign  of  a  cruel  and  sanguinary  disposition 
will  sometimes  sacrifice  his  inclination  to  the  force  of  reason 
arrayed  against  it.  Bonaparte  was  not  cruel  either  by  incli- 
nation or  on  system ;  he  merely  wanted  to  carry  his  point  by 
the  quickest  and  surest  method.  He  has  himself  said  that 
at  that  time  he  was  obliged  to  get  rid  of  both  Jacobins  and 
Koyalists.  The  imprudence  of  the  latter  furnished  him  with 
this  fatal  opportunity.  He  seized  it ;  and  what  I  shall  here- 
after have  to  relate  will  show  that  it  was  with  the  coolest  of 
calculation,  or  rather  of  sophistry,  that  he  shed  illustrious  and 
innocent  blood. 

A  few  days  after  the  first  return  of  the  King,  the  Due 
de  Eovigo  [General  Savary]  presented  himself  at  my  house 
one  morning.*  He  then  tried  to  clear  himself  from  the 
accusations  that  were  brought  against  him.  He  spoke  to  me 
of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien.  "  The  Emperor  and  I," 
he  said,  "  were  deceived  on  that  occasion.  One  of  the  infe- 
rior agents  in  Georges  Cadoudal's  conspiracy  had  been  sub- 
orned by  my  police.  He  came  to  us,  and  stated  that  one 
night,  when  all  the  conspirators  were  assembled,  the  secret 
arrival  of  an  important  chief  who  could  not  yet  be  named 

*  The  Due  de  Rovigo  knew  how  intimate  my  husband  and  I  were  with  M. 
de  Talleyrand,  and  he  was  anxious  to  induce  us  to  further  his  interests  in  that 
quarter. 


PICHEGRU.  113 

had  been  announced  to  them.  A  few  nights  later,  a  person 
appeared  among  them,  to  whom  the  others  paid  great  respect. 
The  spy  described  the  unknown  so  as  to  give  us  the  impres- 
sion that  he  was  a  prince  of  the  house  of  Bourbon.  About 
the  same  time  the  Due  d'Enghien  had  established  himself 
at  Ettenheim,  with  the  intention,  no  doubt,  of  awaiting  the 
result  of  the  conspiracy.  The  police  agents  wrote  that  he 
sometimes  disappeared  for  several  days  together.  "We  con- 
cluded that  at  these  times  he  came  to  Paris,  and  his  arrest 
was  resolved  upon.  Afterward,  when  the  spy  was  confront- 
ed with  the  persons  who  had  been  arrested,  he  recognized  Pi- 
chegru  as  the  important  personage  of  whom  he  had  spoken ; 
and  when  I  told  this  to  Bonaparte  he  exclaimed,  with  a 
stamp  of  his  foot,  'Ah,  the  wretch!  what  has  he  made 
me  do?'" 

To  return  to  the  facts.  Pichegru  arrived  in  France  on 
the  loth  of  January,  1804,  and  from  the  25th  of  January  was 
concealed  in  Paris.  It  was  known  that,  in  the  year  5  of  the 
Eepublic,  General  Moreau  had  denounced  him  to  the  Govern- 
ment for  keeping  up  relations  with  the  house  of  Bourbon. 
Moreau  was  supposed  to  hold  Republican  opinions ;  but  he 
had  probably  then  exchanged  them  for  the  idea  of  a  constitu- 
tional monarchy.  I  do  not  know  whether  his  family  would 
now  defend  him  as  earnestly  as  they  did  then  from  the  accu- 
sation of  having  aided  the  plans  of  the  Royalists,  nor  do  I 
know  whether  implicit  confidence  is  to  be  placed  on  confes- 
sions made  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XVIII.  The  conduct  of 
Moreau  in  1813,  and  the  honor  paid  to  his  memory  by  our 
princes,  might,  however,  fairly  lead  us  to  believe  that  they 
had  reason  to  count  on  him  previously.  At  the  period  of 
which  I  am  now  speaking,  Moreau  was  deeply  irritated 
against  Bonaparte.  It  has  never  been  doubted  that  he  visited 
Pichegru  in  secret ;  he  certainly  kept  silence  about  the  con- 
spiracy. Some  of  the  Royalists  who  were  arrested  at  this 
time  declared  that  he  had  merely  displayed  that  prudent 
hesitation  which  waits  to  declare  itself  for  the  success  of  a 


114:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

party.  Moreau,  it  was  said,  was  a  feeble  and  insignificant 
man,  except  on  the  field  of  battle,  and  overweighted  by  his 
reputation.  "  There  are  persons,"  said  Bonaparte,  "  who  do 
not  know  how  to  wear  their  fame.  The  part  of  Monk  suited 
Moreau  perfectly.  In  his  place  I  should  have  acted  as  he 
did,  only  more  cleverly." 

It  is  not,  however,  in  order  to  justify  Bonaparte  that  I 
mention  my  doubts.  Whatever  was  Moreau's  character,  his 
fame  was  real ;  it  ought  to  have  been  respected,  and  an  old 
comrade  in  arms,  grown  discontented  and  embittered,  ought 
to  have  been  excused.  A  reconciliation  with  him,  even  if  it 
had  only  been  a  result  of  that  political  calculation  which 
Bonaparte  discerned  in  the  "  Auguste  "  of  Corneille,  would 
still  have  been  the  wisest  proceeding.  But  I  do  not  doubt 
that  Bonaparte  was  sincerely  convinced  of  what  he  called 
Moreau's  moral  treason,  and  he  held  that  to  be  sufficient  for 
the  law  and  for  justice,  because  he  always  refused  to  look  at 
the  true  aspect  of  anything  which  was  displeasing  to  himself. 
He  was  assured  that  proofs  to  justify  the  condemnation  of 
Moreau  were  not  wanting.  He  found  himself  committed  to 
a  line  of  action,  and  afterward  he  refused  to  recognize  any- 
thing but  party  spirit  in  the  equity  of  the  tribunals ;  and, 
besides,  he  knew  the  most  injurious  thing  which  could  hap- 
pen to  him  would  be  that  this  interesting  prisoner  should 
be  declared  innocent.  When  he  found  himself  on  the  point 
of  being  compromised,  he  would  stop  at  nothing.  From  this 
cause  arose  the  deplorable  incidents  of  the  famous  trial.  The 
conspiracy  had  been  a  subject  of  conversation  for  several 
days.  On  the  17th  of  February,  1804,  I  went  to  the  Tuile- 
ries  in  the  morning.  The  Consul  was  in  the  room  with  his 
wife ;  I  was  announced  and  shown  in.  Mme.  Bonaparte  was 
in  great  distress ;  her  eyes  were  red  with  crying.  Bonaparte 
was  sitting  near  the  fireplace,  with  little  Napoleon  *  on  his 

*  The  eldest  child  of  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte,  afterward  Queen  Hortense.  He 
was  born  on  the  10th  of  October,  1802,  and  died  of  croup  on  the  5th  of  May, 
1807.— P.  R. 


ARREST  OF  GENERAL  MOREAU.  115 

knees.  He  looked  grave,  but  not  agitated,  and  was  playing 
mechanically  with  the  child. 

"  Do  you  know  what  I  have  done  ? "  said  he.  I  answered 
in  the  negative.  "  I  have  just  given  an  order  for  Moreau's 
arrest."  1  could  not  repress  a  start.  "  Ah,  you  are  aston- 
ished," said  he.  "  There  will  be  a  great  fuss  about  this,  will 
there  not  ?  Of  course,  it  will  be  said  that  I  am  jealous  of 
Moreau,  that  this  is  revenge,  and  other  petty  nonsense  of  the 
same  kind.  I  jealous  of  Moreau !  Why,  he  owes  the  best 
part  of  his  reputation  to  me.  It  was  I  who  left  a  fine  army 
with  him,  and  kept  only  recruits  with  myself  in  Italy.  I 
wanted  nothing  more  than  to  get  on  well  with  him.  I  cer- 
tainly was  not  afraid  of  him ;  I  am  not  afraid  of  anybody, 
and  less  of  Moreau  than  of  other  people.  I  have  hindered 
him  from  committing  himself  twenty  times  over.  I  warned 
him  that  there  would  be  mischief  made  between  us;  he 
knew  that  as  well  as  I  did.  But  he  is  weak  and  conceited ; 
he  allows  women  to  lead  him,  and  the  various  parties  have 
urged  him." 

While  he  was  speaking  Bonaparte  rose,  approached  his 
wife,  and,  taking  her  by  the  chin,  made  her  hold  up  her 
head.  "  Ha ! "  he  said,  "  every  one  has  not  got  a  good  wife, 
like  me.  You  are  crying,  Josephine.  What  for,  eh  ?  Are 
you  frightened  ? "  "  No  ;  but  I  don't  like  to  think  of  what 
will  be  said."  "  What  ?  How  can  that  be  helped  ?  "  Then, 
turning  to  me,  he  added,  "  I  am  not  actuated  by  any  enmity 
or  any  desire  of  vengeance ;  I  have  reflected  deeply  before 
arresting  Moreau.  I  might  have  shut  my  eyes,  and  given 
him  time  to  fly,  but  it  would  have  been  said  that  I  did  not 
dare  to  bring  him  to  trial.  I  have  the  means  of  convicting 
him.  He  is  guilty ;  I  am  the  Government ;  the  whole  thing 
is  quite  simple." 

I  can  not  tell  whether  the  power  of  my  old  recollections 
^  still  upon  me,  but  I  confess  that  even  at  this  moment  I  can 
hardly  believe  that  when  Bonaparte  spoke  thus  he  was  not 
sincere.  I  have  watched  each  stage  of  progress  in  the  art  of 


116  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

dissimulation,  and  I  know  that  at  that  particular  epoch  he 
still  retained  certain  accents  of  truthfulness,  which  after- 
ward were  no  longer  to  be  detected  in  his  voice.  Per- 
haps, however,  it  was  only  that  at  that  time  I  still  believed 
in  him. 

With  the  above  words  he  left  us,  and  Mme.  Bonaparte 
told  me  that  he  remained  up  almost  the  whole  of  the  night, 
debating  whether  or  not  he  should  have  Moreau  arrested, 
weighing  the  pros  and  cons  of  the  measure,  without  any 
symptom  of  personal  feeling  in  the  matter ;  that  then,  toward 
daybreak,  he  sent  for  General  Berthier,  and  after  a  long  in- 
terview with  him  he  determined  on  sending  to  Grosbois, 
whither  Moreau  had  retired. 

This  event  gave  rise  to  a  great  deal  of  discussion,  and 
opinion  was  much  divided.  General  Moreau's  brother,  a 
tribune,  spoke  with  great  vehemence  at  the  Tribunate,  and 
produced  considerable  effect.  A  deputation  was  sent  up  by 
the  three  representative  bodies  with  an  address  of  congratu- 
lation to  the  First  Consul.  In  Paris,  all  who  represented  the 
liberal  portion  of  the  population,  a  section  of  the  bourgeoisie, 
lawyers,  and  men  of  letters,  were  warmly  in  favor  of  Moreau. 
It  was,  of  course,  plain  enough  that  political  opposition  formed 
an  element  in  the  interest  exhibited  on  his  behalf ;  his  parti- 
sans agreed  that  they  would  throng  the  court  at  which  he 
was  to  be  brought  up,  and  there  was  even  a  threatening 
whisper  about  what  should  be  done  if  he  were  condemned. 
Bonaparte's  police  informed  him  that  there  was  a  plot  to 
break  into  Moreau's  prison.  This  irritated  him,  and  his 
calmness  began  to  give  way.  Murat,  his  brother-in-law,  who 
was  then  Governor  of  Paris,  hated  Moreau,  and  took  care  to 
add  to  Bonajparte's  exasperation  by  his  daily  reports  to  him, 
he  and  Dubois,  the  Prefect  of  Police,  combining  together  to 
pursue  him  with  alarming  rumors.  Events,  unhappily,  came 
to  the  aid  of  their  design.  Each  day  a  fresh  ramification  of 
the  conspiracy  was  discovered,  and  each  day  Parisian  society 
refused  more  obstinately  than  on  the  preceding  to  believe 


ARREST  OF  GENERAL  MOREAU. 

that  there  was  any  conspiracy  at  all.  A  war  of  opinion  was 
being  waged  between  Bonaparte  and  the  Parisians. 

On  the  29th  of  February  Pichegru's  hiding-place  was  dis- 
covered, and  he  was  arrested,  after  a  gallant  struggle  with 
the  gendarmes.  This  event  somewhat  shook  the  general  in- 
credulity, but  public  interest  still  centered  in  Moreau.  His 
wife's  grief  assumed  a  rather  theatrical  aspect,  and  this  also 
had  its  effect.  In  the  mean  time  Bonaparte,  who  was  igno- 
rant of  the  formalities  of  law,  found  them  much  more  tedi- 
ous than  he  had  expected.  At  the  commencement  of  the 
affair,  the  Chief  Judge  had  too  readily  undertaken  to  sim- 
plify and  shorten  the  procedure,  and  now  only  one  charge 
was  distinctly  made :  that  Moreau  had  held  secret  conferences 
with  Pichegru,  and  had  received  his  confidence,  but  without 
pledging  himself  positively  to  anything.  This  was  not  suffi- 
cient to  secure  a  condemnation,  which  was  becoming  a  neces- 
sity. In  short,  notwithstanding  that  great  name  which  is 
mixed  up  in  the  affair,  Georges  Cadoudal  has  always  been 
believed  to  have  been,  as  at  the  trial  he  appeared  to  be,  the 
real  leader  of  the  conspiracy. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  describe  the  excitement  that 
pervaded  the  palace.  Everybody  was  consulted ;  the  most 
trifling  conversations  were  repeated.  One  day  Savary  took 
M.  de  Eemusat  aside,  and  said,  "  You  have  been  a  magis- 
trate, you  know  the  laws ;  do  you  think  the  details  of  this 
affair  that  we  are  in  possession  of  are  sufficient  for  the  infor- 
mation of  the  judges  ?  "  "  No  man,"  replied  my  husband, 
"  has  ever  been  condemned  merely  because  he  did  not  reveal 
projects  with  which  he  was  made  acquainted.  No  doubt 
that  is  a  political  wrong  with  respect  to  the  Government,  but 
it  is  not  a  crime  which  ought  to  involve  the  penalty  of  death ; 
and,  if  that  is  your  sole  plea,  you  will  only  have  furnished 
Moreau  with  evidence  damaging  to  yourselves."  "  In  that 
case,"  said  Savary,  "the  Chief  Judge  has  led  us  into  making 
a  great  blunder.  It  would  have  been  better  to  have  had  a 
military  commission." 


118  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

From  the  day  of  Picliegru's  arrest,  the  gates  of  Paris 
were  shut,  while  search  was  made  for  Georges  Cadoudal,  who 
eluded  pursuit  with  extraordinary  success.  Fouche,  who 
laid  the  foundations  of  his  new  reputation  on  this  occasion, 
mercilessly  ridiculed  the  unskillfulness  of  the  police,  and  his 
comments  enraged  Bonaparte,  who  was  already  angry  enough ; 
so  that,  when  he  had  incurred  a  real  danger,  and  saw  that  the 
Parisians  were  disinclined  to  believe  the  statement  of  the 
facts,  he  began  to  wish  for  revenge.  "Judge,"  said  he, 
"whether  the  French  can  ever  be  governed  by  legal  and 
moderate  institutions  ?  I  have  put  down  a  revolutionary  but 
useful  department  of  the  ministry,  and  conspiracies  are  im- 
mediately formed.  I  have  foregone  my  own  personal  feel- 
ings ;  I  have  handed  over  the  punishment  of  a  man  who  in- 
tended to  kill  me  to  an  authority  independent  of  myself ; 
and,  far  from  giving  me  any  thanks  for  all  this,  people  laugh 
at  my  moderation,  and  assign  corrupt  motives  to  my  conduct. 
I  will  teach  them  to  belie  my  intentions.  I  will  lay  hold  of 
all  my  powers  again,  and  prove  to  them  that  I  alone  am 
made  to  govern,  to  decide,  and  to  punish." 

Bonaparte  grew  more  and  more  angry  as  lie  became 
aware,  from  moment  to  moment,  that  something  was  amiss 
with  himself.  He  had  thought  to  rule  public  opinion,  but 
here  was  public  opinion  escaping  from  his  hold.  He  had 
been  ruled  himself  by  it  in  the  outset  of  his  career,  I  am 
certain,  and  he  had  gained  no  credit  by  that ;  so  he  resolved 
that  never  again  would  he  be  so  mistaken.  It  will  seem 
strange,  to  those  who  do  not  know  how  utterly  the  wearing 
of  a  uniform  destroys  the  habit  of  thinking,  that  not  the 
slightest  uneasiness  was  felt  on  this  occasion  with  respect  to 
the  army.  Military  men  do  everything  by  word  of  com- 
mand, and  they  abstain  from  opinions  which  are  not  pre- 
scribed to  them.  Yery  few  officers  remembered  then  that 
they  had  fought  and  conquered  under  Moreau,  and  the  'bour- 
geoisie was  much  more  excited  about  the  affair  than  any 
other  class. 


ARREST  OF  GENERAL  MOREAU.  H9 

The  Polignacs,  M.  de  Riviere,  and  some  others  were 
arrested.  Then  the  public  began  to  think  there  really  was 
some  truth  in  the  story  of  the  conspiracy,  and  that  the  plot 
was  a  Eoyalist  one.  Nevertheless,  the  Republican  party 
still  demanded  Moreau.  The  nobility  were  alarmed  and 
kept  very  quiet ;  they  condemned  the  imprudence  of  the 
Polignacs,  who  have  since  acknowledged  that  they  were  not 
seconded  with  so  much  zeal  as  they  had  been  led  to  expect. 
The  error  into  which  they  fell,  and  to  which  the  Royalist 
party  was  always  prone,  was  that  they  believed  in  the  exist- 
ence of  what  they  desired,  and  acted  upon  their  illusions. 
This  is  a  mistake  common  to  men  who  are  led  by  their  pas- 
sions or  by  their  vanity. 

I  suffered  a  great  deal  at  this  time.  At  the  Tuileries  the 
First  Consul  was  moody  and  silent,  his  wife  was  frequently 
in  tears,  his  family  were  angry ;  his  sister  exasperated  him 
by  her  violent  way  of  talking.  In  society  opinions  were 
divided  :  on  the  one  hand  were  distrust,  suspicion,  indignant 
satisfaction  ;  on  the  other,  regret  that  the  attempt  had  failed 
and  passionate  condemnation.  All  these  contentions  dis- 
tracted and  upset  me.  I  shut  myself  up  with  my  mother 
and  my  husband  ;  we  questioned  one  another  about  all  that 
we  heard  and  everything  that  we  respectively  thought.  M. 
de  Remusat's  steady  rectitude  of  mind  was  grieved  by  the 
errors  which  were  perpetrated  ;  and,  as  his  judgment  was 
quite  uninfluenced  by  passion,  he  began  to  dread  the  future, 
and  imparted  to  me  his  sagacious  and  melancholy  prevision 
of  a  character  which  he  studied  closely  and  silently.  His 
apprehensions  distressed  me ;  the  doubts  which  were  spring- 
ing up  in  my  own  mind  rendered  me  very  unhappy.  Alas ! 
the  moment  was  drawing  near  when  I  was  to  be  far  more 
painfully  enlightened. 


CHAPTER   Y. 

The  Arrest  of  Georges  Cadoudal— The  Mission  of  M.  de  Caulaincourt  to  Ettenheim 
— The  Arrest  of  the  Due  d'Enghien — My  Distress  and  my  Urgency  with  Mme. 
Bonaparte — An  Evening  at  Malmaison — The  Death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien — 
Eemarkable  Words  of  the  First  Consul. 

AFTEE  the  arrests  which  I  have  already  recorded,  there 
appeared  in  the  "Moniteur"  certain  articles  from  the 
"  Morning  Chronicle,"  in  which  it  was  stated  that  the  death 
of  Bonaparte  and  the  restoration  of  Louis  XVIII.  were  im- 
minent. It  was  added  that  persons  newly  arrived  from 
London  affirmed  that  speculation  upon  these  eventualities 
was  rife  on  the  Stock  Exchange,  and  that  Georges  Cadoudal, 
Pichegru,  and  Moreau  were  named  openly  there.  In  the 
same  "  Moniteur  "  appeared  a  letter  from  an  Englishman  to 
Bonaparte,  whom  he  addressed  as  "  Monsieur  Consul."  The 
purport  of  this  letter  was  to  recommend,  as  specially  appli- 
cable to  Bonaparte,  a  pamphlet  written  in  Cromwell's  time, 
which  tended  to  prove  that  persons  such  as  Cromwell  and 
himself  could  not  be  assassinated,  because  there  was  no  crime 
in  killing  a  dangerous  animal  or  a  tyrant.  "  To  kill  is  not  to 
assassinate  in  such  cases,"  said  the  pamphlet ;  "  the  difference 
is  great." 

In  France,  however,  addresses  from  all  the  towns  and 
from  all  the  regiments,  and  pastorals  by  all  the  Bishops, 
complimenting  the  First  Consul  and  congratulating  France 
on  the  danger  which  had  been  escaped,  were  forwarded  to 
Paris ;  and  these  documents  were  punctually  inserted  in  the 
"  Moniteur." 

At  length,  on  the  29th  of  March,  Georges  Cadoudal  was 


ARREST  OF  GEORGES  CADOUDAL. 

arrested  in  the  Place  de  POdeon.  He  was  in  a  cabriolet, 
and,  perceiving  that  he  was  followed,  he  urged  on  his  horse. 
A  gendarme  bravely  caught  the  animal  by  the  head,  and  was 
shot  dead  by  Cadoudal ;  the  cabriolet  was,  however,  stopped 
owing  to  the  crowd  which  instantly  collected  at  the  noise  of 
the  pistol-shot,  and  Cadoudal  was  seized.  Between  sixty 
thousand  and  eighty  thousand  francs  in  notes  were  found  on 
him,  and  given  to  the  widow  of  the  man  whom  he  had 
killed.  The  newspapers  stated  that  he  acknowledged  he  had 
come  to  France  for  no  other  purpose  than  to  assassinate 
Bonaparte ;  but  I  remember  to  have  heard  at  the  time  that 
the  prisoner,  whose  courage  and  firmness  during  the  whole 
of  the  proceedings  were  unshaken,  and  who  evinced  great 
devotion  to  the  house  of  Bourbon,  steadily  denied  that  there 
had  ever  been  any  purpose  of  assassination,  while  admitting 
that  his  intentions  had  been  to  attack  the  carriage  of  the 
First  Consul,  and  to  carry  him  off  without  harming  him. 

At  this  time  the  King  of  England  (George  III.)  was 
taken  seriously  ill,  and  our  Government  reckoned  upon  his 
death  to  insure  the  retirement  of  Mr.  Pitt  from  the  ministry. 

On  the  21st  of  March  the  following  appeared  in  the 
"  Moniteur  "  :  "  Prince  de  Conde  has  addressed  a  circular  to 
the  emigres,  with  a  view  to  collecting  them  on  the  Rhine. 
A  prince  of  the  house  of  Bourbon  is  now  on  the  frontier  for 
that  purpose." 

Immediately  afterward  the  secret  correspondence  that 
had  been  taken  from  Mr.  Drake,  the  accredited  English 
Minister  in  Bavaria,  was  published.  These  proved  that  the 
English  Government  was  leaving  no  means  untried  of  creat- 
ing disturbance  in  France.  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  directed 
to  send  copies  of  this  correspondence  to  all  the  members  of 
the  Corps  Diplomatique,  and  they  expressed  their  indigna- 
tion in  letters  which  were  inserted  in  the  "  Moniteur." 

Holy  Week  was  approaching.  On  Passion  Sunday,  the 
18th  of  March,  my  week  of  attendance  on  Mme.  Bonaparte 
began.  I  went  to  the  Tuileries  in  the  morning,  in  time  for 


122  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

mass,  which,  was  again  celebrated  with  all  the  former  pomp. 
After  mass,  Mme.  Bonaparte  received  company  in  the  great 
drawing-room,  and  remained  for  some  time,  talking  to  sev- 
eral persons.  When  we  went  down  to  her  private  apart- 
ments, she  informed  me  that  we  were  to  pass  that  week  at 
Malmaison.  "  I  am  very  glad,"  she  added ;  "Paris  frightens 
me  just  now."  Shortly  afterward  we  set  out;  Bonaparte 
was  in  his  own  carriage,  Mme.  Bonaparte  and  myself  in  hers. 
I  observed  that  she  was  very  silent  and  sad  for  a  part  of  the 
way,  and  I  let  her  see  that  I  was  uneasy  about  her.  At  first 
she  seemed  reluctant  to  give  me  any  explanation,  but  at 
length  she  said,  "  I  am  going  to  trust  you  with  a  great  secret. 
This  morning  Bonaparte  told  me  that  he  had  sent  M.  de 
Caulaincourt  to  the  frontier  to  seize  the  Due  d'Enghien. 
He  is  to  be  brought  back  here."  "Ah,  madame,"  I  ex- 
claimed, "  what  are  they  going  to  do  with  him ? "  "I  be- 
lieve," she  answered,  "  he  will  have  him  tried."  I  do  not 
think  I  have  ever  in  my  life  experienced  such  a  thrill  of 
terror  as  that  which  her  words  sent  through  me.  Mme. 
Bonaparte  thought  I  was  going  to  faint,  and  let  down  all  the 
glasses.  "  I  have  done  what  I  could,"  she  went  on,  "  to  in- 
duce him  to  promise  me  that  the  prince's  life  shall  not 
be  taken,  but  I  am  greatly  afraid  his  mind  is  made  up." 
"  What,  do  you  really  think  he  will  have  him  put  to  death  ? " 
"  I  fear  so."  At  these  words  I  burst  into  tears,  and  then,  so 
soon  as  I  could  master  my  emotion  sufficiently  to  be  able  to 
speak,  I  urged  upon  her  the  fatal  consequences  of  such  a 
deed,  the  indelible  stain  of  the  royal  blood,  whose  shedding 
would  satisfy  the  Jacobin  party  only,  the  strong  interest 
with  which  the  prince  inspired  all  the  other  parties,  the  great 
name  of  Conde,  the  general  horror,  the  bitter  animosity 
which  would  be  aroused,  and  many  other  considerations.  I 
urged  every  side  of  the  question,  of  which  Mme.  Bonaparte 
contemplated  one  only.  The  idea  of  a  murder  was  that 
which  had  struck  her  most  strongly;  but  I  succeeded  in 
seriously  alarming  her,  and  she  promised  me  that  she  would 


THE  MISSION  OF  M.    CAULAINGOUET.  123 

endeavor  by  every  means  in  her  power  to  induce  Bonaparte 
to  relinquish  his  fatal  purpose. 

We  both  arrived  at  Malmaison  in 'the  deepest  dejection. 
I  took  refuge  at  once  in  my  own  room,  where  I  wept  bitter- 
ly. I  was  completely  overwhelmed  by  this  terrible  discov- 
ery. I  liked  and  admired  Bonaparte ;  I  believed  him  to  be 
called  by  an  invincible  power  to  the  highest  of  human  desti- 
nies; I  allowed  my  youthful  imagination  to  run  riot  con- 
cerning him.  All  in  a  moment,  the  veil  which  hid  the  truth 
from  my  eyes  was  torn  away,  and  by  my  own  feelings  at  that 
instant  I  could  only  too  accurately  divine  what  would  be  the 
general  opinion  of  such  an  act. 

There  was  no  one  at  Malmaison  to  whom  I  could  speak 
freely.  My  husband  was  not  in  waiting,  and  had  remained 
in  Paris.  I  was  obliged  to  control  my  agitation,  and  to 
make  my  appearance  with  an  unmoved  countenance;  for 
Mme.  Bonaparte  had  earnestly  entreated  me  not  to  let  Bo- 
naparte divine  that  she  had  spoken  to  me  of  this  matter. 

On  going  down  to  the  drawing-room  at  six  o'clock,  I 
found  the  First  Consul  playing  a  game  of  chess.  He  ap- 
peared quite  serene  and  calm  ;  it  made  me  ill  to  look  at  his 
face.  So  completely  had  my  mind  been  upset  by  all  that 
had  passed  through  it  during  the  last  two  hours,  that  I  could 
not  regard  him  with  the  feelings  which  his  presence  usually 
inspired  ;  it  seemed  to  me  that  I  must  see  some  extraordinary 
alteration  in  him.  A  few  officers  dined  with  him.  Nothing 
whatever  of  any  significance  occurred.  After  dinner  he 
withdrew  to  his  cabinet,  where  he  transacted  business  with 
his  police.  That  night,  when  I  was  leaving  Mme.  Bona- 
parte, she  again  promised  me  that  she  would  renew  her  en- 
treaties. 

I  joined  her  as  early  as  I  could  on  the  following  morning, 
and  found  her  quite  in  despair.  Bonaparte  had  repelled  her 
at  every  point.  He  had  told  her  that  women  had  no  concern 
with  such  matters  ;  that  his  policy  required  this  coup  $etat  / 
that  by  it  he  should  acquire  the  right  to  exercise  clemency 


124  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

hereafter ;  that,  in  fact,  he  was  forced  to  choose  between  this 
decisive  act  and  a  long  series  of  conspiracies  which  he  would 
have  to  punish  in  detail,  as  impunity  would  have  encouraged 
the  various  parties.  He  should  have  to  go  on  prosecuting, 
exiling,  condemning,  without  end ;  to  revoke  his  measures 
of  mercy  toward  the  emigres  ;  to  place  himself  in  the  hands 
of  the  Jacobins.  The  Royalists  had  more  than  once  com- 
promised him  with  the  revolutionists.  The  contemplated 
action  would  set  him  free  from  all  parties  alike.  Besides, 
the  Due  d'Enghien,  after  all,  had  joined  in  the  conspiracy  of 
Georges  Cadoudal ;  he  was  a  cause  of  disturbance  to  France, 
and  a  tool  in  the  hands  of  England  for  effecting  her  purposes 
of  vengeance.  The  prince's  military  reputation  might  in  the 
future  prove  a  source  of  trouble  in  the  army ;  whereas  by 
his  death  the  last  link  between  our  soldiers  and  the  Bourbons 
would  be  broken.  In  politics,  a  death  which  tranquillizes  a 
nation  is  not  a  crime.  Finally,  he  had  given  his  orders — he 
would  not  withdraw  them ; '  there  was  an  end  of  the  matter. 

During  this  interview,  Mme.  Bonaparte  informed  her 
husband  that  he  was  about  to  aggravate  the  heinousness  of 
the  deed  by  the  selection  of  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  whose  pa- 
rents had  formerly  been  in  the  household  of  the  Prince  de 
Conde,  as  the  person  who  was  to  arrest  the  Due  d'Enghien. 
"  I  did  not  know  that,"  replied  Bonaparte  ;  "  but  what  does 
it  matter?  If  Caulaincourt  is  compromised,  there  is  no 
great  harm  in  that ;  indeed,  it  will  only  make  him  serve  me 
all  the  better,  and  the  opposite  party  will  henceforth  forgive 
him  for  being  a  gentleman."  He  then  added  that  M.  de 
Caulaincourt,  who  had  been  informed  of  only  a  portion  of 
his  plan,  believed  that  the  Due  d'Enghien  was  to  be  impris- 
oned in  France. 

My  heart  failed  me  at  these  words.  M.  de  Caulaincourt 
was  a  friend  of  mine.  It  seemed  to  me  that  he  ought  to 
have  refused  to  undertake  such  a  task  as  that  which  had  been 
imposed  upon  him. 

The  day  passed  drearily.     I  remember  that  Mme.  Bona- 


MY  DISTRESS  AND   URGENCY.  125 

parte,  who  was  very  fond  of  trees  and  flowers,  was  busy  dur- 
ing the  morning  superintending  the  transplanting  of  a  cy- 
press to  a  newly  laid-out  portion  of  her  garden.  She  threw 
a  few  handfuls  of  earth  on  the  roots  of  the  tree,  so  that  she 
might  say  that  she  had  planted  it  with  her  own  hands.  "  Ah, 
madame,"  said  I  to  her,  as  I  observed  her  doing  so,  "a 
cypress  is  just  the  tree  to  suit  such  a  day  as  this."  I  have 
never  passed  by  that  cypress  since  without  a  thrill  of  pain. 

My  profound  emotion  distressed  Mme.  Bonaparte.  She 
had  great  faith  in  all  Bonaparte's  views,  and,  owing  to  her 
natural  levity  and  fickleness,  she  excessively  disliked  painful 
or  lasting  impressions.  Her  feelings  were  quick,  but  extra- 
ordinarily evanescent.  Being  convinced  that  the  death  of 
the  Due  d'Enghien  was  inevitable,  she  wanted  to  get  rid  of 
an  unavailing  regret ;  but  I  would  not  allow  her  to  do  so. 
I  importuned  her  all  day  long,  without  ceasing.  She  listened 
to  me  with  extreme  gentleness  and  kindness,  but  in  utter 
dejection ;  she  knew  Bonaparte  better  than  I.  I  wept  while 
talking  to  her ;  I  implored  her  not  to  allow  herself  to  be  put 
down,  and,  as  I  was  not  without  influence  over  her,  I  suc- 
ceeded in  inducing  her  to  make  a  last  attempt. 

"  Mention  me  to  the  First  Consul,  if  necessary,"  said  I. 
"  I  am  of  very  little  importance,  but  at  least  he  will  be  able 
to  judge  of  the  impression  he  is  about  to  make  by  the  effect 
upon  me,  and  I  am  more  attached  to  him  than  other  people 
are.  I3  who  would  ask  nothing  better  than  to  find  excuses 
for  him,  can  not  see  even  one  for  what  he  intends  to  do." 

We  saw  very  little  of  Bonaparte  during  the  whole  of  that 
second  day.  The  Chief  Judge,  the  Prefect  of  Police,  and 
Murat  all  came  to  Malmaison,  and  had  prolonged  audience 
of  the  First  Consul ;  I  augured  ill  from  their  countenances. 
I  remained  up  a  great  part  of  the  night ;  and  when  at  length 
I  fell  asleep  my  dreams  were  frightful.  I  fancied  that  I 
heard  constant  movements  in  the  chateau,  and  that  a  fresh 
attempt  was  about  to  be  made  upon  our  lives.  I  was  pos- 
sessed with  a  strong  desire  to  go  and  throw  myself  at  Bona- 


126  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

parte's  feet,  and  implore  him  to  take  pity  upon  his  own  fame, 
which  I  then  believed  to  be  very  pure  and  bright,  and  I 
grieved  heartily  over  the  tarnishing  of  it.  The  hours  of  that 
night  can  never  be  effaced  from  my  memory. 

On  the  Tuesday  morning  Mme.  Bonaparte  said  to  me, 
"  All  is  useless.  The  Due  d'Enghien  arrives  this  evening. 
He  will  be  taken  to  Yincennes  and  tried  to-night.  Murat 
has  undertaken  the  whole.  He  is  odious  in  this  matter ;  it  is 
he  who  is  urging  Bonaparte  on,  by  telling  him  that  his  clem- 
ency will  be  taken  for  weakness,  that  the  Jacobins  will  be 
furious,  and  one  party  is  now  displeased  because  the  former 
fame  of  Moreau  has  not  been  taken  into  consideration,  and 
will  ask  why  a  Bourbon  should  be  differently  treated.  Bona- 
parte has  forbidden  me  to  speak  to  him  again  on  the  sub- 
ject. He  asked  me  about  you,"  she  added,  "  and  I  acknowl- 
edged that  I  had  told  you  everything.  He  had  perceived 
your  distress.  Pray  try  to  control  yourself." 

At  this  I  lost  all  self-restraint,  and  exclaimed,  "  Let  him 
think  what  he  likes  of  me.  It  matters  very  little  to  me, 
madame,  I  assure  you ;  and  if  he  asks  me  why  I  am  weeping, 
I  will  tell  him  that  I  weep  for  him."  And,  in  fact,  I  again 
burst  into  tears. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  was  thrown  into  utter  consternation  by 
the  state  I  was  in — she  was  almost  a  stranger  to  any  strong 
mental  emotion ;  and  when  she  tried  to  calm  me  by  reassur- 
ing words  I  could  only  say  to  her,  "  Ah,  madame,  you  do  not 
understand  me!"  After  this  event,  she  said,  Bonaparte 
would  go  on  just  as  he  had  done  before.  Alas !  it  was  not 
the  future  which  was  troubling  me.  I  did  not  doubt  his 
power  over  himself  and  others.  The  anguish  that  filled  my 
whole  being  was  interior  and  personal. 

Dinner  hour  came,  and  she  had  to  go  down  with  a  com- 
posed face.  Mine  was  quite  beyond  my  control.  Again  Bo- 
naparte was  playing  chess :  he  had  taken  a  fancy  to  that  game. 
Immediately  on  perceiving  me  he  called  me  to  him,  saying 
that  he  wanted  to  consult  me.  I  was  not  able  to  speak.  He 


AN  EVENING  AT  MALMAISON.  127 

addressed  me  in  a  tone  of  kindness  and  interest,  which  in- 
creased my  confusion  and  distress.  When  dinner  was  served, 
he  placed  me  near  himself,  and  asked  me  a  number  of  ques- 
tions about  the  affairs  of  my  family.  He  seemed  bent  on 
bewildering  me,  and  hindering  me  from  thinking.  Little 
Napoleon  (the  son  of  Louis  and  Hortense)  had  been  brought 
down  from  Paris ;  and  his  uncle  placed  the  child  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  table,  and  seemed  much  amused  when  he  pulled 
the  dishes  about,  and  upset  everything  within  his  reach. 

After  dinner  he  sat  on  the  floor,  playing  with  the  boy, 
and  apparently  in  very  high  spirits,  but,  it  seemed  to  me,  as- 
sumed. Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  afraid  that  he  would 
have  been  angry  at  what  she  had  told  him  about  me,  looked 
from  him  to  me,  smiling  sweetly,  as  if  she  would  have  said, 
"You  see,  he  is  not  so  bad  after  all ;  we  may  make  our 
minds  easy." 

I  hardly  knew  where  I  was.  I  felt  as  though  I  were 
dreaming  a  bad  dream ;  no  doubt  I  looked  bewildered.  Sud- 
denly, fixing  a  piercing  gaze  on  me,  Bonaparte  said,  "  Why 
have  you  no  rouge  on  ?  You  are  too  pale."  I  answered 
that  I  had  forgotten  to  put  on  any.  "  What ! "  said  he,  "  a 
woman  forget  to  put  on  her  rouge?"  And  then,  with  a 
loud  laugh,  he  turned  to  his  wife  and  added,  "  That  would 
never  happen  to  you,  Josephine."  I  was  greatly  disconcert- 
ed, and  he  completed  my  discomfiture  by  remarking,  "  Two 
things  are  very  becoming  to  women — rouge  and  tears." 

When  General  Bonaparte  was  in  high  spirits,  he  was 
equally  devoid  of  taste  and  moderation,  and  on  such  occasions 
his  manners  smacked  of  the  barrack-room.  He  went  on  for 
some  time  jesting  with  his  wife  with  more  freedom  than 
delicacy,  and  then  challenged  me  to  a  game  of  chess.  He 
did  not  play  well,  and  never  would  observe  the  correct 
"  moves."  I  allowed  him  to  do  as  he  liked ;  every  one  in 
the  room  kept  silence.  Presently  he  began  to  mutter  some 
lines  of  poetry,  and  then  repeated  a  little  louder,  "  Soyons  ami, 

Cinna  "  and  Guzman's  lines  in  Act  v.  Scene  vii.  of  "  Alzire  "  : 
12 


128  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RJ&MUSAT. 

"  Des  dieux  que  nous  servons  connais  la  difference : 
Les  tiens  font  coramande  le  meurtre  et  la  vengeance : 
Et  le  mien,  quand  ton  bras  vient  de  m'assassiner, 
M'ordonne  de  te  plaindre  et  de  te  pardonner." 

As  he  half  whispered  the  line, 

"  Et  le  mien,  quand  ton  bras  vient  de  m'assassiner," 

I  could  not  refrain  from  raising  my  eyes  and  looking  at  him. 
He  smiled,  and  went  on  repeating  the  verses.  In  truth,  at 
that  moment  I  did  believe  that  he  had  deceived  his  wife  and 
everybody  else,  and  was  planning  a  grand  scene  of  magnani- 
mous pardon.  I  caught  eagerly  at  this  idea,  and  it  restored 
me  to  composure.  My  imagination  was  very  juvenile  in 
those  days,  and  I  longed  so  much  to  be  able  to  hope  ! 

"  You  like  poetry  ? "  Bonaparte  asked  me.  How  I  longed 
to  answer,  "  Especially  when  the  lines  are  applicable  " ;  but 
I  did  not  dare  to  utter  the  words.  I  may  as  well  mention  in 
this  place  that  the  very  day  after  I  had  set  down  the  above 
reminiscence,  a  friend  lent  me  a  book  entitled  "  Memoires 
Secretes  sur  la  Yie  de  Lucien  Bonaparte."  This  work,  which 
is  probably  written  by  a  secretary  of  Lucien's,  is  inaccurate 
in  several  instances.  Some  notes  added  at  the  end  are  said 
to  be  written  by  a  person  worthy  of  belief.  I  found  among 
them  the-  following,  which  struck  me  as  curious :  "  Lucien 
was  informed  of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  by  General 
Hullin,  a  relative  of  Mme.  Jouberthon,  who  came  to  her 
house  some  hours  after  that  event,  looking  the  image  of  grief 
and  consternation.  The  Military  Council  had  been  assured 
that  the  First  Consul  only  purposed  to  assert  his  authority, 
and  fully  intended  to  pardon  the  prince,  and  certain  lines 
from  *  Alzire,'  commencing 

4  Des  dieux  que  nous  servons  connais  la  difference,' 

had  been  quoted  to  them." 

But  to  resume.  We  went  on  with  our  game,  and  his 
gayety  gave  me  more  and  more  confidence.  We  were  still 


DEATH  OF  TEE  DUG  &ENGHIEN.  129 

playing  when  the  sound  of  carriage-wheels  was  heard,  and 
presently  General  Hullin  was  announced.  Bonaparte  pushed 
away  the  chess-table  roughly,  rose,  and  went  into  the  adjoin- 
ing gallery.  There  he  remained  all  the  rest  of  the  evening, 
with  Murat,  Hullin,  and  Savary.  We  saw  no  more  of  him, 
and  yet  I  went  to  my  room  feeling  more  easy.  I  could  not 
believe  but  that  Bonaparte  must  be  moved  by  the  fact  of 
having  such  a  victim  in  his  hands.  I  hoped  the  prince  would 
ask  to  see  him ;  and  in  fact  he  did  so,  adding,  "  If  the  First 
Consul  would  consent  to  see  me,  he  would  do  me  justice,  for 
he  would  know  that  I  have  done  my  duty."  My  idea  was 
that  Bonaparte  would  go  to  Yincennes,  and  publicly  grant 
the  prince  pardon  in  person.  If  he  were  not  going  to  act 
thus,  why  should  he  have  quoted  those  lines  from  "  Alzire  "  ? 
•  That  night,  that  terrible  night,  passed.  Early  in  the 
morning  I  went  down  to  the  drawing-room,  and  there  I 
found  Savary.  He  was  deadly  pale,  and  I  must  do  him  the 
justice  to  say  that  his  face  betrayed  great  agitation.  He 
spoke  to  me  with  trembling  lips,  but  his  words  were  quite 
insignificant.  I  did  not  question  him;  for  persons  of  his 
kind  will  always  say  what  they  want  to  say  without  being 
asked,  although  they  never  give  answers. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  came  in,  looked  at  me  very  sadly,  and, 
as  she  took  her  seat,  said  to  Savary,  "  Well — so  it  is  done  ? " 
"  Yes,  madame,"  he  answered.  "  He  died  this  morning,  and, 
I  am  bound  to  acknowledge,  with  great  courage."  I  was 
struck  dumb  with  horror. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  asked  for  details.  They  have  all  been 
made  known  since.  The  prince  was  taken  to  one  of  the 
trenches  of  the  chateau.  Being  offered  a  handkerchief  to 
bind  his  eyes  with,  he  rejected  it  with  dignity,  and,  address- 
ing the  gendarmes,  said, "  You  are  Frenchmen :  at  least  you 
will  do  me  the  service  not  to  miss  your  aim."  He  placed  in 
Savary's  hands  a  ring,  a  lock  of  hair,  and  a  letter  for  Mme. 
de  Rohan ;  and  all  these  Savary  showed  to  Mme.  Bonaparte. 
The  letter  was  open ;  it  was  brief  and  tender.  I  do  not 


130  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE  RtiMUSAT. 

know  whether  these  last  wishes  of  the  unfortunate  prince 
were  carried  out. 

"After  his  death,"  said  Savary,  "the  gendarmes  were 
told  that  they  might  take  his  clothes,  his  watch,  and  the 
money  he  had  in  his  pocket ;  bat  not  one  of  them  would 
touch  anything.  People  may  say  what  they  like,  but  one 
can  not  see  a  man  like  that  die  as  coolly  as  one  can  see  others. 
I  feel  it  hard  to  get  over  it." 

Presently  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  made  his  appearance. 
He  was  too  young  to  have  recollections  of  the  past,  and  in 
his  eyes  the  Due  d'Enghien  was  simply  a  conspirator  against 
the  life  of  his  master.  Then  came  certain  generals,  whose 
names  I  will  not  set  down  here ;  and  they  approved  of  the 
deed  so  loudly  that  Mme.  Bonaparte  thought  it  necessary  to 
apologize  for  her  own  dejection,  by  repeating  over  and  over 
again  the  unmeaning  sentence,  "  I  am  a  woman,  you  know, 
and  I  confess  I  could  cry." 

In  the  course  of  the  morning  a  number  of  visitors  came 
to  the  Tuileries.  Among  them  were  the  Consuls,  the  Min- 
isters, and  Louis  Bonaparte  and  his  wife.  Louis  preserved  a 
sullen  silence,  which  seemed  to  imply  disapprobation.  Mme. 
Louis  was  so  frightened  that  she  did  not  dare  to  feel,  and 
seemed  to  be  asking  what  she  ought  to  think.  "Women,  even 
more  than  men,  were  subjugated  by  the  magic  of  that  sacra- 
mental phrase  of  Bonaparte's — "My  policy."  "With  those 
words  he  crushed  one's  thoughts,  feelings,  and  even  impres- 
sions ;  and,  when  he  uttered  them,  no  one  in  the  palace, 
especially  no  woman,  would  have  dared  to  ask  him  what  he 
meant. 

My  husband  also  came  during  the  morning,  and  his  pre- 
sence relieved  me  from  the  terrible  oppression  from  which  I 
was  suffering.  He,  like  myself,  was  grieved  and  downcast. 
How  grateful  I  was  to  him  for  not  lecturing  me  upon  the 
absolute  necessity  of  our  appearing  perfectly  composed  under 
the  circumstances !  We  sympathized  in  every  feeling.  He 
told  me  that  the  general  sentiment  in  Paris  was  one  of  dis- 


THE  FIRST  CONSUL'S  REMARKABLE  WORDS.     131 

gust,  and  that  the  heads  of  the  Jacobin  party  said,  "  He  be- 
longs to  us  now."  He  added  the  following  words,  which  I 
have  frequently  recalled  to  mind  since:  "The  Consul  has 
taken  a  line  which  will  force  him  into  laying  aside  the  use- 
ful, in  order  to  efface  this  recollection,  and  into  dazzling  us 
by  the  extraordinary  and  the  unexpected."  He  also  said  to 
Mme.  Bonaparte :  "  There  is  one  important  piece  of  advice 
which  you  ought  to  give  the  First  Consul.  It  is  that  he 
should  not  lose  a  moment  in  restoring  public  confidence. 
Opinion  is  apt  to  be  precipitate  in  Paris.  He  ought  at  least 
to  prove  to  the  people  that  the  event  which  has  just  occurred 
is  not  due  to  the  development  of  a  cruel  disposition,  but  to 
reasons  whose  force  I  am  not  called  upon  to  determine,  and 
which  ought  to  make  him  very  circumspect." 

Mme.  Bonaparte  fully  appreciated  the  advice  of  M.  de 
Kemusat,  and  immediately  repeated  his  words  to  her  husband. 
He  seemed  well  disposed  to  listen  to  her,  and  answered 
briefly,  "  That  is  quite  true."  On  rejoining  Mme.  Bonaparte 
before  dinner,  I  found  her  in  the  gallery,  with  her  daughter 
and  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  who  had  just  arrived.  He  had 
superintended  the  arrest  of  the  prince,  but  had  not  accom- 
panied him  to  Paris.  I  recoiled  at  the  sight  of  him.  "  And 
you,  too,"  said  he,  addressing  me,  so  that  all  could  hear  him, 
"  you  are  going  to  detest  me !  And  yet  I  am  only  unfor- 
tunate ;  but  that  I  am  in  no  small  degree,  for  the  Consul  has 
disgraced  me  by  this  act.  Such  is  the  reward  of  my  devotion 
to  him.  I  have  been  shamefully  deceived,  and  I  am  now 
ruined."  He  shed  tears  while  speaking,  and  I  could  not  but 
pity  him. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  assured  me  afterward  that  he  had  spoken 
in  the  same  way  to  the  First  Consul,  and  I  was  myself  a 
witness  to  his  maintenance  of  a  severe  and  angry  bearing 
toward  Bonaparte,  who  made  many  advances  to  him,  but  for 
a  long  time  in  vain.  The  First  Consul  laid  out  his  plans  be- 
fore him,  but  found  him  cold  and  uninterested ;  then  he  made 
him  brilliant  offers,  by  way  of  amends,  which  were  at  first 


132  MEMOIRS  Of  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

rejected.     Perhaps  they  ought  to  have  been  always  re- 
fused. 

In  the  mean  time  public  opinion  declared  itself  strongly 
against  M.  de  Caulaincourt.  Certain  persons  condemned 
the  aide-de-camp  mercilessly,  while  they  made  excuses  for 
the  master;  and  such  injustice  exasperated  M.  de  Caulain- 
court, who  might  have  bowed  his  head  before  frank  and 
candid  censure,  fairly  distributed  between  them.  When, 
however,  he  saw  that  every  sort  of  affront  was  to  be  heaped 
on  him,  in  order  that  the  real  culprit  might  go  quite  free,  he 
conceived  an  utter  disdain  for  these  people,  and  consented  to 
force  them  into  silence  by  placing  himself  in  a  position  of 
such  authority  as  would  enable  him  to  overrule  them.  He 
was  urged  to  take  this  course  by  Bonaparte,  and  also  by  his 
own  ambition.  "  Do  not  act  like  a  fool,"  said  the  former. 
"  If  you  retreat  before  the  blows  which  are  aimed  at  you, 
you  will  be  done  for ;  no  one  will  give  you  any  thanks  or 
credit  for  your  tardy  opposition  to  my  wishes,  and  you  will 
be  all  the  more  heavily  censured  because  you  are  not  formid- 
able." By  dint  of  similar  reasoning  frequently  reiterated, 
and  by  the  employment  of  every  sort  of  device  for  consoling 
and  coaxing  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  Bonaparte  succeeded  in 
appeasing  his  resentment,  and  by  degrees  he  raised  him  to 
posts  of  great  dignity  about  his  own  person.  The  weakness 
which  induced  M.  de  Caulaincourt  to  pardon  the  indelible 
injury  which  the  First  Consul  had  done  him  may  be  more 
or  less  blamed ;  but,  at  least,  it  should  be  admitted  that  he 
was  never  a  blind  or  servile  courtier,  and  that  he  remained  to 
the  last  among  the  small  number  of  Bonaparte's  servants  who 
never  neglected  an  opportunity  of  telling  him  the  truth.* 

*  M.  de  Caulaincourt  retained  the  same  feelings  all  his  life,  and  very  severely 
condemned  the  policy  and  the  personal  character  of  Bonaparte,  whose  fatal  pro- 
jects he  frequently  endeavored  to  avert.  M.  Monnier,  the  son  of  the  celebrated 
member  of  the  Assemblies  of  the  Revolution,  with  whom  my  father  was  very  in- 
timate in  his  youth,  told  him  that  in  the  campaign  of  1813  M.  de  Caulaincourt, 
then  Due  de  Vienne,  while  accompanying  the  Emperor  with  several  members  of 
his  staff  and  of  his  household,  saw  a  shell  strike  the  ground  close  by  Napoleon. 


THE  FIRST  CONSUL'S  REMARKABLE  WORDS.     133 

Before  dinner,  both  Mme.  Bonaparte  and  her  daughter 
entreated  me  to  command  my  countenance  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. The  former  told  me  that  her  husband  had  asked  her 
that  morning  what  effect  the  deplorable  news  had  produced 
upon  me ;  and  on  her  replying  that  I  had  wept,  he  said, 
"  That  is  a  matter  of  course  ;  she  merely  did  what  was  to  be 
expected  of  her  as  a  woman.  You  don't  understand  any- 
thing about  our  business ;  but  it  will  all  subside  and  every- 
body will  see  that  I  have  not  made  a  blunder." 

At  length  dinner  was  announced.  In  addition  to  the 
household  officers  on  duty  for  that  week,  the  dinner-party 
included  M.  and  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte,  Eugene  Beauharnais, 
M.  de  Caulaincourt,  and  General  Hullin,  who  was  then  Com- 
mandant of  Paris.  The  sight  of  this  man  affected  me  pain- 
fully. His  expression  of  face,  perfectly  unmoved,  was  just 
the  same  on  that  day  as  it  had  been  on  the  preceding.*  I 
quite  believe  that  he  did  not  think  he  had  done  an  ill  deed, 
or  that  he  had  performed  an  act  of  zeal  in  presiding  over  the 
military  commission  which  condemned  the  prince.  Bonaparte 
rewarded  the  fatal  service  which  he  had  rendered  him  with 
money  and  promotion,  but  he  said  more  than  once,  when  he 
noted  Hullin's  presence,  "  The  sight  of  him  annoys  me ;  he 
reminds  me  of  things  which  I  do  not  like." 

Bonaparte  did  not  come  into  the  drawing-room  at  all ;  he 
went  from  his  cabinet  to  the  dinner-table.  He  affected  no 
high  spirits  that  day ;  on  the  contrary,  he  remained  during 
the  whole  time  of  dinner  in  a  profound  reverie.  We  were 
all  very  silent.  Just  as  we  were  about  to  rise  from  table,  the 
First  Consul  said,  in  a  harsh,  abrupt  tone,  as  if  in  reply  to 

He  rode  up,  putting  his  horse  between  the  Emperor  and  the  missile,  and  covered 
him  as  much  as  possible  from  the  fragments  of  the  shell,  which  happily  explod- 
ed without  hitting  anybody.  In  the  evening.  M.  Monnier,  who  was  supping  at 
headquarters,  spoke  to  him  of  this  deed  of  bravery,  by  which  he  had  risked  his 
own  life  to  save  that  of  his  master.  "  That  is  true,"  replied  the  Due  de  Vienne, 
"  and  yet  I  could  not  believe  that  there  is  a  God  in  heaven  if  that  man  were  to 
die  on  the  throne." 

*  I  have  since  been  assured  that  he  was  deeply  grieved. 


134:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

his  own  thoughts,  "  At  least  they  will  see  what  we  are  capa- 
ble of,  and  henceforth,  I  hope,  they  will  leave  us  alone." 
He  then  passed  on  into  the  drawing-room,  where  he  talked 
for  a  long  time  in  a  low  voice  with  his  wife,  looking  at  me 
now  and  then,  but  without  any  anger  in  his  glance.  I  sat 
apart  from  all,  downcast  and  ill,  without  either  the  power  or 
the  wish  to  utter  a  word. 

Presently  Joseph  Bonaparte  and  M.  and  Mme.  Bacciochi  * 
arrived,  accompanied  by  M.  de  Fontanes.f  Lucien  was  on 
bad  terms  with  his  brother,  who  had  objected  to  his  marriage 
with  Mme.  Jouberthon,  and  came  no  more  to  the  palace ; 
indeed,  he  was  then  making  ready  to  leave  France.  During 
the  evening,  Murat,  Dubois,  who  was  Prefect  of  Police,  the 
members  of  the  Council  of  the  State,  and  others  arrived, 
all  with  composed  faces.  The  conversation  was  at  first  tri- 
fling and  awkward  :  the  women  sitting  silent,  the  men  stand- 
ing in  a  semicircle,  Bonaparte  walking  about  from  one  side 
of  the  room  to  the  other.  Presently  he  began  a  discussion, 
half  literary,  half  historical,  with  !M.  de  Fontanes.  The  men- 
tion of  certain  names  which  belong  to  history  gave  him  an 
opportunity  of  bringing  out  his  opinion  of  some  of  our 
kings  and  great  military  commanders.  I  remarked  on  this 
evening  that  he  dwelt  on  dethronements  of  every  kind,  both 
actual  and  such  as  are  effected  by  a  change  of  mind.  He  lauded 
Charlemagne,  but  maintained  that  France  had  always  been 
en  decadence  under  the  Yalois.  He  depreciated  the  great- 
ness of  Henry  IY.  "  He  was  wanting,"  said  he,  "  in  gravi- 
ty. Good  nature  is  an  affectation  which  a  sovereign  ought 
to  avoid.  What  does  he  want  ?  Is  it  to  remind  those  who 
surround  him  that  he  is  a  man  like  any  other  ?  What  non- 
sense !  So  soon  as  a  man  is  a  king  he  is  apart  from  all,  and 
I  have  always  held  that  the  instinct  of  true  policy  was  in 

*  M.  Bacciochi  was  then  a  colonel  of  dragoons,  and  had  nothing  whatever  to 
do  with  politics.  He  had  a  passion  for  the  violin,  and  played  all  day. 

f  M.  de  Fontanes  was  appointed  President  of  the  Corps  Legislatif  at  this 
time,  and  afterward  perpetual  President. 


THE  FIRST  CONSUL'S  REMARKABLE  WORDS.     135 

Alexander's  idea  of  making  himself  out  to  be  the  descendant 
of  a  god."  He  added  that  Louis  XIY.  knew  the  French  bet- 
ter than  Henry  IY. ;  but  he  hastened  to  add  that  Louis  had 
allowed  "  priests  and  an  old  woman "  to  get  the  better  of 
him,  and  he  made  some  coarse  remarks  on  that  point.  Then 
he  held  forth  on  Louis  XIY.'s  generals,  and  on  military 
science  in  general. 

"Military  science,"  said  Bonaparte,  "consists  in  calcu- 
lating all  the  chances  accurately  in  the  first  place,  and  then 
in  giving  accident  exactly,  almost  mathematically,  its  place 
in  one's  calculations.  It  is  upon  this  point  that  one  must 
not  deceive  one's  self,  and  that  a  decimal  more  or  less  may 
change  all.  Now,  this  apportioning  of  accident  and  science 
can  not  get  into  any  head  except  that  of  a  genius,  for  genius 
must  exist  wherever  there  is  a  creation ;  and  assuredly  the 
grandest  improvisation  of  the  human  mind  is  the  gift  of  an 
existence  to  that  which  has  it  not.  Accident,  hazard,  chance, 
whatever  you  choose  to  call  it,  a  mystery  to  ordinary  minds, 
becomes  a  reality  to  superior  men.  Turenne  did  not  think 
about  it,  and  so  he  had  nothing  but  method.  I  think,"  he 
added  with  a  smile,  "  I  should  have  beaten  him.  Conde  had 
a  better  notion  of  it  than  Turenne,  but  then  he  gave  himself 
up  to  it  with  impetuosity.  Prince  Eugene  is  one  of  those 
who  understood  it  best.  Henry  IY.  always  put  bravery  in 
the  place  of  everything  ;  he  only  fought  actions — he  would 
not  have  come  well  out  of  a  pitched  battle.  Catinat  has 
been  cried  up  chiefly  from  the  democratic  point  of  view ;  I 
have,  for  my  own  part,  carried  off  a  victory  on  the  spot  where 
he  was  beaten.  The  philosophers  have  worked  up  his  repu- 
tation after  their  own  fancy,  and  that  was  all  the  easier  to 
do,  because  one  may  say  anything  one  likes  about  ordinary 
people  who  have  been  lifted  into  eminence  by  circumstances 
not  of  their  own  creating.  A  man,  to  be  really  great,  no 
matter  in  what  order  of  greatness,  must  have  actually  im- 
provised a  portion  of  his  own  glory — must  have  shown  him- 
self superior  to  the  event  which  he  has  brought  about.  For 


136  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

instance,  Csesar  acted  now  and  then  with  weakness,  which 
makes  me  suspect  the  praises  that  are  lavished  on  him  in 
history. 

"  I  am  rather  doubtful  of  your  friends  the  historians,  M. 
de  Fontanes.  Even  your  Tacitus  himself  explains  nothing ; 
he  arrives  at  certain  results  without  indicating  the  routes  that 
have  been  followed.  He  is,  I  think,  able  as  a  writer,  but 
hardly  so  as  a  statesman.  He  depicts  Nero  as  an  execrable 
tyrant,  and  then  he  tells  us,  almost  in  the  same  page  with  a 
description  of  the  pleasure  he  felt  in  burning  down  Rome, 
that  the  people  loved  him.  All  that  is  not  plain  and  clear. 
Believe  me,  we  are  sometimes  the  dupes  of  our  beliefs — of 
writers  who  have  fabricated  history  for  us  in  accordance 
with  the  natural  bent  of  their  own  minds.  But  do  you  know 
whose  history  I  should  like  to  read,  if  it  were  well  written  ? 
That  of  King  Frederick  II.  of  Prussia.  I  hold  him  to  be 
one  of  those  who  has  best  understood  his  business  in  every 
sort  of  way.  These  ladies  " — here  he  turned  to  us — "  will 
not  be  of  my  opinion ;  they  will  say  that  he  was  harsh  and 
selfish.  But,  after  all,  is  a  great  statesman  made  for  feeling  ? 
Is  he  not  a  completely  eccentric  personage,  who  stands  al- 
ways alone,  on  his  own  side,  with  the  world  on  the  other  ? 
The  glass  through  which  he  looks  is  that  of  his  policy ;  his 
sole  concern  ought  to  be  that  it  should  neither  magnify  nor 
diminish.  And,  while  he  observes  objects  with  attention,  he 
must  also  be  careful  to  hold  the  reins  equally ;  for  the  chariot 
which  he  drives  is  often  drawn  by  ill-matched  horses.  How, 
then,  is  he  to  occupy  himself  with  those  fine  distinctions  of 
feelings  which  are  important  to  the  generality  of  mankind  ? 
Can  he  consider  the  affections,  the  ties  of  kinship,  the  puerile 
arrangements  of  society?  In  such  a  position  as  his,  how 
many  actions  are  regarded  separately,  and  condemned,  al- 
though they  are  to  contribute  as  a  whole  to  that  great  work 
which  the  public  does  not  discern  ?  One  day,  those  deeds 
will  terminate  the  creation  of  the  Colossus  which  will  be  the 
wonder  of  posterity.  And  you,  mistaken  as  you  are — you 


THE  FIRST  CONSUL'S  REMARKABLE   WORDS.     137 

will  withhold  your  praises,  because  you  are  afraid  lest  the 
movement  of  that  great  machine  should  crush  you,  as  Gulli- 
ver crushed  the  Lilliputians  when  he  moved  his  legs.  Be 
advised  ;  go  on  in  advance  of  the  time,  enlarge  your  imagina- 
tion, look  out  afar,  and  you  will  see  that  those  great  person- 
ages whom  you  think  violent  and  cruel  are  only  politic. 
They  know  themselves  better,  they  judge  themselves  more 
correctly  than  you  do ;  and,  when  they  are  really  able  men, 
they  know  how  to  master  their  passions,  for  they  even  calcu- 
late the  effects  of  them." 

From  this,  which  was  a  kind  of  manifesto,  the  opinions 
of  Bonaparte  may  be  gathered,  and  also  a  notion  of  the  rapid 
succession  in  which  his  ideas  followed  each  other  when  he 
allowed  himself  to  talk.  It  sometimes  happened  that  his 
discourse  would  be  less  consecutive,  for  he  put  up  well 
enough  with  interruptions  ;  but  on  the  day  in  question  every 
one  seemed  to  be  benumbed  in  his  presence ;  no  one  ven- 
tured to  take  up  certain  applications  of  his  words,  which  it 
was  evident  he  intended.  He  had  never  ceased  walking  to 
and  fro  while  he  was  talking,  and  this  for  more  than  an  hour. 
Many  other  things  which  he  said  have  escaped  my  memory. 
At  length,  abruptly  breaking  off  the  chain  of  his  ideas,  he 
directed  M.  de  Fontanes  to  read  aloud  certain  extracts  from 
Drake's  correspondence,  which  I  have  already  mentioned,  all 
relating  to  the  conspiracy.  When  the  reading  of  the  extracts 
was  concluded,  "  There  are  proofs  here,"  said  he,  "  that  can 
not  be  disputed.  These  people  wanted  to  throw  France  into 
confusion,  and  to  destroy  the  Revolution  by  destroying  me ; 
it  was  my  duty  both  to  defend  and  to  avenge  the  Revolution. 
I  have  proved  of  what  it  is  capable.  The  Due  d'Enghien 
was  a  conspirator  like  any  other,  and  he  had  to  be  treated  as 
such.  The  whole  affair,  moreover,  was  arranged  without 
caution  or  accurate  knowledge  of  the  ground,  on  the  faith  of 
some  obscure  correspondence ;  a  few  credulous  old  women 
wrote  letters,  and  were  believed.  The  Bourbons  will  never 
see  anything  except  through  the  CEU-de-Bceuf,  and  they  are 


138  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

fated  to  be  perpetually  deluded.  The  Polignacs  made  sure 
that  every  house  in  Paris  would  he  open  to  them ;  and,  when 
they  arrived  here,  not  a  single  noble  would  receive  them. 
If  all  these  fools  were  to  kill  me,  they  would  not  get  their 
own  way ;  they  would  only  put  angry  Jacobins  in  my  place. 
The  day  of  etiquette  is  over,  but  the  Bourbons  can  not  give 
it  up.  If  ever  you  see  them  return,  mark  my  words  that  it 
will  be  the  first  subject  that  will  occupy  their  minds.  Ah  ! 
it  would  have  been  another  story  could  they  have  been  seen, 
like  Henry  IY.,  covered  with  dust  and  blood  on  a  battle- 
field. A  kingdom  is  not  got  back  by  dating  a  letter  from 
London,  and  signing  it  *  Louis.'  Nevertheless,  such  a  letter 
compromises  imprudent  people,  and  I  am  obliged  to  punish 
them,  although  I  feel  a  sort  of  pity  for  them.  I  have  shed 
blood ;  it  was  necessary  to  do  so.  I  may  have  to  shed  more, 
but  not  out  of  anger — simply  because  blood-letting  is  one  of 
the  remedies  in  political  medicine.  I  am  the  man  of  the 
State ;  I  am  the  French  Kevolution.  I  say  it,  and  I  will  up- 
hold it." 

After  this  last  declaration,  Bonaparte  dismissed  us  all. 
We  dispersed  without  daring  to  interchange  our  ideas,  and 
thus  ended  this  fatal  day.* 

*  The  murder  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  is  an  inexhaustible  subject  of  contro- 
versy between  the  opponents  of  the  Empire  and  the  supporters  of  Napoleon. 
In  the  most  recent  and  important  works  of  historians  and  memoir-writers,  there 
is  nothing  to  contradict  the  above  narrative,  which  possesses,  moreover,  every 
mark  of  sincerity  and  truthfulness.  The  First  Consul  originated  and  ordered 
the  crime  ;  Savary  and  the  military  commission  executed  it ;  M.  de  Caulaincourt 
was  the  unconscious  medium.  A  full  account  of  the  trial  may  be  found  in  a 
work  entitled  "  Le  Due  d'Enghien  d'apres  les  Documents  Historiques,"  par  L. 
Constant,  8vo,  Paris,  1869.  The  following  extract  from  Chateaubriand's  "Me- 
moires  d'Outre-tombe  "  will,  I  think,  be  of  interest  at  this  point,  although  the 
work  does  not  rank  among  the  best  productions  of  its  author,  and  can  not  be 
absolutely  relied  on.  Nevertheless,  M.  de  Chateaubriand's  resignation  of  his 
post  on  the  day  following  the  crime  is  justly  held  honorable  to  him.  "  A  coun- 
cil was  held  on  the  proposed  arrest  of  the  Due  d'Enghien.  Cambaceres,  in  his 
unpublished  Memoirs,  asserts — and  I  believe  him — that  he  opposed  the  arrest ; 
but,  although  he  records  his  own  words,  he  does  not  say  what  replies  they  eli- 
cited. The  *  M6morial  de  Ste.  H61ene '  denies,  however,  that  Bonaparte  had  to 


THE  FIRST  CONSUL'S  REMARKABLE  WORDS.    139 

refuse  any  entreaties  for  clemency.  The  imaginary  scene  in  which  Josephine 
begs  on  her  knees  for  the  life  of  the  Due  d'Enghien,  and,  clinging  to  the  coat  of 
Napoleon,  is  dragged  along  the  ground  by  her  inexorable  husband,  is  one  of 
those  melodramatic  inventions  with  which  the  fiction-writers  of  the  present  day 
compose  their  veracious  histories.  On  the  evening  of  March  19th  Josephine 
was  in  ignorance  that  the  Due  d'Enghien  was  to  be  tried  ;  she  only  knew  that 
he  had  been  arrested.  She  had  promised  Mme.  de  Re'musat  to  interest  herself 
in  his  fate.  ...  On  March  21st,  Bonaparte  said  to  his  wife,  *  The  Due  d'En- 
ghien has  been  shot.'  The  Memoirs  of  Mme.  de  Remusat,  with  whom  I  was 
acquainted,  were  full  of  exceedingly  curious  details  of  the  private  life  of  the 
Imperial  Court.  Their  author  burned  them  during  the  Hundred  Days,  but  after- 
ward rewrote  them.  They  are  now  but  recollections  of  former  recollections ; 
the  colors  are  faded ;  but  Bonaparte  is  always  clearly  depicted  and  impartially 
judged."-?.  B. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

(1804.) 

The  Impression  produced  in  Paris  "by  the  Death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien— The  First 
Consul's  Efforts  to  dispel  itn-Performance  at  the  Opera  House— Death  of  Piche- 
gru— Breach  between  Bonaparte  and  his  Brother  Lucien— Project  of  adopting 
the  young  Napoleon — Foundation  of  the  Empire. 

THE  First  Consul  spared  no  pains  to  allay  the  excitement 
which  was  caused  by  this  event.  He  perceived  that  his  con- 
duct had  raised  the  question  of  his  real  character,  and  he  set 
himself  to  prove,  both  by  his  speeches  in  the  Council  of 
State,  and  also  to  all  of  us,  that  political  considerations  only, 
and  not  passion  of  any  kind,  had  led  to  the  death  of  the  Due 
d'Enghien.  As  I  said  before,  he  made  no  attempt  to  check 
the  genuine  indignation  evinced  by  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  and 
toward  me  he  displayed  indulgence  which  once  more  unset- 
tled my  opinions.  How  strong  a  power  of  persuasion  do 
sovereigns,  whatever  their  character,  exercise  over  us !  Our 
feelings,  and,  to  be  frank,  our  vanity  also,  run  to  meet  their 
slightest  advances  half-way.  I  grieved,  but  I  felt  myself  be- 
ing slowly  won  over  by  the  adroitness  of  Bonaparte ;  and  I 
cried 

"Pint  £  Dieu  ce  fat  le  dernier  de  ses  crimes !  " 

Meanwhile  we  returned  to  Paris,  and  then  my  feelings 
were  again  painfully  excited  by  the  state  of  opinion  there. 
I  could  make  no  reply  to  what  was  said.  I  could  only  try  to 
persuade  those  who  believed  that  this  fatal  act  was  but  the 
beginning  of  a  blood-stained  reign,  that  they  were  mistaken ; 
and  although  it  would  be  difficult,  in  point  of  fact,  to  ex- 


EXCITEMENT  IN  PARIS. 

aggerate  the  impression  that  such  a  crime  must  produce,  still 
party  spirit  ran  so  high  that,  although  my  own  feelings  re- 
volted against  it,  I  sometimes  found  myself  endeavoring  to 
offer  some  sort  of  excuse  for  it — uselessly  enough,  since  I  was 
addressing  myself  to  people  whose  convictions  were  unalter- 
able. 

I  had  a  warm  discussion  with  Mme.  de ,  a  cousin  of 

Mme.  Bonaparte's.  She  was  one  of  those  persons  who  did 
not  attend  the  evening  receptions  at  the  Tuileries,  but  who, 
having  divided  the  palace  into  two  separate  regions,  con- 
sidered that  they  might  appear  in  Mme.  Bonaparte's  apart- 
ment on  the  ground  floor  in  the  morning,  without  departing 
from  their  principles  or  sullying  their  reminiscences  by  re- 
cognition of  the  actual  government  on  the  first  floor. 

She  was  a  clever,  animated  woman,  with  rather  high- 
flown  notions.  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  frightened  by  her 
vehement  indignation ;  and,  finding  me  with  her  one  day, 
she  attacked  me  with  equal  vigor,  and  compassionated  both 
of  us  for  being,  as  she  said,  bound  in  chains  to  a  tyrant.  She 
went  so  far  that  I  tried  to  make  her  understand  the  distress 
she  was  inflicting  on  her  cousin.  Then  she  turned  violently 
upon  me,  and  accused  me  of  not  sufficiently  appreciating  the 
horror  of  the  event  that  had  just  taken  place.  "  As  for  me," 
she  said,  "  every  sense  and  every  feeling  is  so  outraged  that, 
if  your  Consul  were  to  come  into  this  room,  you  would  see 
me  fly  on  the  instant,  as  one  flies  from  a  venomous  beast." 
"  Ah,  madame,"  I  answered  (little  thinking  that  my  words 
would  prove  prophetic),  "  refrain  from  expressions  which  at 
some  future  day  may  prove  embarrassing  to  you.  Weep 
with  us,  but  reflect  that  the  recollection  of  words  uttered  in 
a  moment  of  excitement  often  complicates  one's  subsequent 
actions.  To-day  you  are  angry  with  me  for  my  apparent 
moderation ;  yet,  perhaps,  my  feelings  will  las,t  longer  than 

yours."     And,  in  fact,  a  few  months  later,  Mme.  de  

became  lady-in-waiting  to  her  cousin,  the  newly  made  Em- 
press. 


142  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE 

Hume  says  somewhere  that  Cromwell,  having  established 
a  sort  of  phantom  of  royalty,  very  soon  found  himself  sur- 
rounded by  that  particular  class  of  nobles  who  conceive  them- 
selves called  on  to  live  in  palaces  so  soon  as  their  doors  are 
reopened.  The  First  Consul,  on  assuming  the  insignia  of 
the  power  he  already  wielded,  offered  a  salve  to  the  con- 
science of  the  old  nobility  which  vanity  always  readily  ap- 
plies ;  for  who  can  resist  the  temptation  of  recovering  the 
rank  he  feels  himself  made  to  adorn  ?  I  am  about  to  draw 
a  very  homely  comparison,  but  I  believe  a  true  one.  In  the 
nature  of  the  grand  seigneur  there  is  something  of  the  char- 
acter of  the  cat,  which  remains  faithful  to  the  same  house, 
no  matter  who  may  become  the  proprietor  of  it. 

Bonaparte,  stained  with  the  blood  of  the  Due  d'Enghien, 
but  having  become  an  Emperor,  succeeded  in  obtaining  from 
the  French  nobles  that  for  which  he  would  have  vainly 
sought  so  long  as  he  was  only  First  Consul ;  and  when,  in 
later  days,  he  maintained  to  one  of  his  ministers  that  this 
murder  was  indeed  a  crime,  but  not  a  blunder — "  for,"  he 
added,  "the  consequences  that  I  foresaw  have  all  exactly 
happened  " — he  was,  in  that  sense,  right. 

And  yet,  if  we  look  at  things  from  a  higher  standpoint, 
the  consequences  of  this  act  of  his  reached  further  than  he 
thought  for.  He  succeeded,  doubtless,  in  moderating  certain 
opinions,  for  there  are  numbers  of  people  who  give  up  feel- 
ing when  there  is  nothing  to  hope ;  but,  as  M.  de  Remusat 
said,  the  odium  which  the  crime  cast  upon  him  obliged  him 
to  divert  our  thoughts  from  it  by  a  succession  of  extraordi- 
nary feats,  which  would  impose  silence  respecting  the  past. 
Moreover,  he  bound  himself,  as  it  were,  to  be  always  success- 
ful, for  by  success  alone  could  he  be  justified.  If  we  con- 
template the  tortuous  and  difficult  path  he  was  henceforth 
obliged  to  tread,  we  shall  conclude  that  a  noble  and  pure 
policy,  based  upon  the  prosperity  of  the  human  race  and  the 
free  exercise  of  its  rights,  would  have  been  then,  as  it  is 
always,  the  best  on  which  a  sovereign  can  act. 


PERFORMANCE  AT  THE  OPERA  HOUSE.         143 

By  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien,  Bonaparte  succeeded 
in  compromising,  first  ourselves,  then  the  French  nobility, 
finally  the  whole  nation  and  all  Europe.  Our  fate  was 
united  with  his,  it  is  true — this  was  a  great  point  for  him ; 
but,  when  he  dishonored  us,  he  lost  the  right  to  that  devotion 
and  adherence  which  he  claimed  in  vain  when  the  hour  of 
his  ill  fortune  came.  How  could  he  reckon  on  a  link  forged, 
it  must  be  owned,  at  the  cost  of  the  noblest  feelings  of  the 
soul?  Alas!  I  judge  by  my  own  case.  From  that  time 
forward  I  began  to  blush  in  secret  at  the  chain  I  wore; 
and  this  hidden  feeling,  which  I  stifled  at  different  times 
with  more  or  less  success,  afterward  became  the  general  sen- 
timent. 

On  his  return  to  Paris,  the  First  Consul  was  struck  by 
the  effect  he  had  produced.  He  perceived  that  feelings  go 
more  slowly  than  opinions,  and  that  men's  countenances 
wore  a  new  expression  in  his  presence.  Weary  of  a  remem- 
brance that  he  would  have  liked  to  render  a  bygone  from  the 
very  first,  he  thought  the  best  plan  was  to  let  the  people 
wear  out  their  emotions  as  quickly  as  possible ;  and  so  he 
determined  to  appear  in  public,  although  certain  persons  ad- 
vised him  to  defer  doing  so  for  a  while.  "  But  we  must,  at 
any  cost,"  he  answered,  "  throw  that  event  into  the  past ;  and 
it  will  remain  new  so  long  as  anything  fresh  is  to  be  felt 
about  it.  If  we  change  nothing  in  our  habits,  the  public 
will  soon  regard  the  occurrence  as  an  old  affair."  It  was 
therefore  arranged  that  he  should  go  to  the  opera. 

On  that  evening  I  was  in  attendance  on  Mme.  Bonaparte ; 
her  carriage  followed  her  husband's.  His  usual  custom  was 
not  to  wait  for  her,  but  to  pass  rapidly  up  the  staircase 
and  show  himself  in  his  box ;  on  this  occasion,  however,  he 
waited  in  the  little  ante-room  adjoining  it  until  Mme.  Bona- 
parte arrived.  She  was  trembling  very  much,  and  he  was 
excessively  pale ;  he  looked  round  at  us  all,  as  if  mutely  ask- 
ing us  how  we  thought  he  would  be  received ;  and  then  he 

went  forward  at  last  like  a  man  marching  up  to  a  battery. 
13 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

He  was  greeted  in  the  usual  way,  either  because  the  sight  of 
him  produced  its  customary  effect — for  the  multitude  do  not 
change  their  habits  in  a  moment — or  because  the  police  had 
taken  measures  of  precaution  beforehand.  I  had  greatly 
feared  he  would 'not  be  applauded,  and  yet,  when  I  saw  that 
he  was,  my  heart  sank  within  me. 

He  remained  only  a  few  days  in  Paris ;  thence  he  removed 
to  Saint  Cloud,  and  I  believe  from  that  time  forth  he  began 
to  carry  his  projects  of  sovereignty  into  execution.  He  felt 
the  necessity  of  imposing  an  authority  which  could  no  longer 
be  contested  upon  Europe,  and,  at  the  very  moment  when  he 
had  just  broken  with  all  parties  by  deeds  which  he  himself 
regarded  as  merely  acts  of  vigor,  he  thought  it  well  to  reveal 
the  goal  toward  which  he  had  been  advancing  with  more  or 
less  precaution.  He  began  by  obtaining  from  the  Corps 
Legislatif ,  now  assembled,  a  levy  of  sixty  thousand  men ;  not 
that  he  wanted  them  for  the  war  with  England,  which  could 
only  be  carried  on  by  sea,  but  because  he  required  to  assume 
an  imposing  attitude  when  about  to  astonish  Europe  by  an 
altogether  novel  incident.  The  Code  of  Civil  Laws  had  just 
been  completed ;  this  was  an  important  work,  and  was  said 
to  be  worthy  of  general  approval.  The  halls  wherein  the 
three  great  bodies  of  the  State  assembled  rang  on  this  occa- 
sion with  the  praises  of  Bonaparte.  M.  Marcorelle,  a  deputy 
of  the  Corps  Legislatif,  moved,  amid  loud  acclamations,  on 
the  24th  of  March,  three  days  after  the  death  of  the  Due 
d'Enghien,  that  a  bust  of  the  First  Consul  should  be  placed 
in  the  Chamber  of  Deputies.  "  Let  us,"  he  said,  "  by  a  strik- 
ing mark  of  our  affection,  proclaim  to  Europe  that  he  who 
has  been  threatened  by  the  daggers  of  vile  assassins  is  the 
object  of  our  attachment  and  admiration." 

A  few  days  later,  Fourcroy,  a  member  of  the  Council  of 
State,  closed  the  session  in  the  name  of  the  Government.  He 
alluded  to  the  princes  of  the  house  of  Bourbon  as  "  members 
of  that  unnatural  family  which  would  have  drowned  France 
in  her  own  blood,  so  that  they  might  reign  over  her,"  and 


DEATH  OF  PICHEGRU.  145 

added  that  they  must  be  threatened  with  death  if  they  ven- 
tured to  pollute  French  territory  by  their  presence. 

Meanwhile,  preparations  for  the  great  trial  were  going 
on ;  every  day  more  Chouans  were  arrested,  either  in  Brit- 
tany or  in  Paris,  who  were  concerned  in  this  conspiracy, 
and  Georges  Cadoudal,  Pichegru,  and  Moreau  had  already 
been  examined  several  times.  The  two  first,  it  was  said, 
answered  with  firmness ;  Moreau  appeared  to  be  much  de- 
jected. No  clear  information  was  obtained  by  these  inter- 
rogatories. 

One  morning  General  Pichegru  was  found  strangled  in 
his  prison.  This  event  made  a  great  sensation.  It  was  un- 
hesitatingly attributed  to  the  need  of  getting  rid  of  a  formid- 
able enemy.  Pichegru's  determination  of  character  would,  it 
was  said,  have  led  him,  when  the  proceeding  became  public, 
to  utter  strong  language,  which  would  have  had  an  undesir- 
able effect.  He  would,  perhaps,  have  created  a  party  in  his 
favor;  he  would  have  cleared  Moreau,  whose  guilt  it  was 
already  so  difficult  to  prove.  On  the  other  hand,  the  parti- 
sans of  Bonaparte  said :  "  Nobody  can  doubt  that  Pichegru 
came  to  Paris  in  order  to  get  up  an  insurrection.  He  him- 
self does  not  deny  it.  His  own  avowals  would  have  con- 
vinced the  most  incredulous ;  Ms  absence  will  prevent  that 
full  light,  which  is  so  desirable,  from  being  thrown  on  the 
proceedings." 

Many  years  afterward  I  asked  M.  de  Talleyrand  one  day 
what  he  thought  of  the  death  of  Pichegru.  "  I  think,"  said 
he,  "that  it  happened  very  suddenly  and  in  the  nick  of 
time ! "  But  just  then  M.  de  Talleyrand  had  fallen  out  with 
Bonaparte,  and  took  every  opportunity  of  bringing  accusa- 
tions against  him ;  I  therefore  by  no  means  commit  myself 
to  any  statement  respecting  this  event.  The  subject  was  not 
spoken  of  at  Saint  Cloud,  and  every  one  refrained  from  the 
slightest  reflection  on  it. 

About  this  time  Lucien  Bonaparte  left  France,  having 
quarreled  irrevocably  with  his  brother.  His  marriage  with 


146  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

Mme.  Jouberthon,  which  Bonaparte  had  been  unable  to  pre- 
vent, was  the  cause  of  the  rupture.  The  Consul,  full  of  his 
great  projects,  made  a  last  attempt  to  induce  him  to  renounce 
this  marriage ;  but  it  was  in  vain  that  Lucien  was  apprised 
of  the  approaching  grandeur  of  his  family,  in  vain  that  a 
marriage  with  the  Queen  of  Etruria*  was  proposed  to 
him.  "Love  was  the  strongest,"  and  he  refused  every- 
thing. A  violent  scene  ensued,  and  Lucien  was  exiled  from 
France. 

On  this  occasion  I  happened  to  see  the  First  Consul  give 
way  to  one  of  those  rare  bursts  of  emotion  of  which  I  have 
before  spoken.  It  was  at  Saint  Cloud,  rather  late  one  even- 
ing. Mme.  Bonaparte  was  anxiously  waiting  the  result  of 
this  final  conference  between  the  two  brothers ;  M.  de  R6- 
musat  and  I  were  the  only  persons  with  her.  She  did  not 
care  for  Lucien,  but  she  deprecated  any  family  scandal.  It 
was  near  midnight  when  Bonaparte  came  into  the  room ;  he 
was  deeply  dejected,  and,  throwing  himself  into  an  arm-chair, 
he  exclaimed,  in  a  troubled  voice,  "  It  is  all  over !  I  have 
broken  with  Lucien,  and  ordered  him  from  my  presence." 
Mme.  Bonaparte  began  to  expostulate.  "You  are  a  good 
woman,"  he  said,  "  to  plead  for  him."  Then  he  rose  from 
his  chair,  took  his  wife  in  his  arms,  and  laid  her  head  softly 
on  his  shoulder,  and  with  his  hand  still  resting  on  the  beau- 
tiful head  which  formed  a  contrast  to  the  sad,  set  counte- 
nance so  near  it,  he  told  us  that  Lucien  had  resisted  all  his 
entreaties,  and  that  he  had  resorted  equally  in  vain  to  both 
threats  and  persuasion.  "  It  is  hard,  though,"  he  added,  "  to 
find  in  one's  own  family  such  stubborn  opposition  to  inter- 
ests of  such  magnitude.  Must  I,  then,  isolate  myself  from 
every  one?  Must  I  rely  on  myself  alone?  Well!  I  will 

*  After  the  treaty  of  LunSville,  in  1801,  Tuscany  had  been  erected  into  the 
kingdom  of  Etruria  and  given  to  the  son  of  the  Duke  of  Parma.  The  King 
having  died  in  1803,  his  widow,  Marie  Louise,  a  daughter  of  Charles  IV.,  King 
of  Spain,  succeeded  him,  and  reigned  until  1807,  at  which  period  the  little 
kingdom  was  incorporated  with  the  Empire,  to  be  again  dismembered  in  1809 
in  favor  of  Mme.  Bacciochi,  who  took  the  title  of  Grand  Duchess  of  Tuscany. 


PROJECT  OF  ADOPTING   YOUNG  NAPOLEON.    147 

suffice  to  myself,  and  you,  Josephine — you  will  be  my  com- 
fort always." 

I  retain  a  pleasurable  recollection  of  this  little  scene. 
Tears  were  in  Bonaparte's  eyes  as  he  spoke.  I  felt  inclined 
to  thank  him  when  he  betrayed  feelings  like  those  of  other 
men.  Shortly  after  this,  his  brother  Louis  crossed  his  wishes 
in  another  way,  and  this  incident  had  probably  a  great  influ- 
ence on  the  fate  of  Mme.  Bonaparte. 

The  Consul,  being  quite  resolved  to  raise  himself  to  the 
throne  of  France  and  to  found  a  dynasty,  had  occasionally 
glanced  at  the  question  of  a  divorce  already ;  but,  either  be- 
cause of  his  attachment  to  his  wife  being  still  too  strong,  or 
because  his  existing  relations  with  Europe  did  not  permit  him 
to  hope  for  an  alliance  which  would  strengthen  his  political 
position,  he  seemed  just  then  disinclined  to  break  with  Jo- 
sephine, and  disposed  to  adopt  the  young  Louis  Napoleon, 
who  was  his  own  nephew  and  also  Josephine's  grandson. 

He  no  sooner  allowed  this  project  to  be  discerned  than 
his  family  rebelled.  Joseph  Bonaparte  ventured  to  repre- 
sent to  him  that  he  had  done  nothing  to  forfeit  the  right  to 
the  crown  which,  as  eldest  brother,  he  would  acquire,  and 
he  defended  that  right  as  if  it  had  really  existed  of  old. 

Bonaparte,  who  was  always  irritated  by  opposition,  grew 
very  angry,  and  only  the  more  determined.  He  confided  his 
intentions  to  his  wife,  who  was  overjoyed,  and  spoke  to  me 
as  though  the  realization  of  this  project  would  bring  her  own 
anxieties  to  an  end.  Mme.  Louis  assented,  but  without  dis- 
playing any  gratification.  She  was  not  at  all  ambitious,  and, 
in  fact,  could  not  help  fearing  that  such  an  elevation  would 
bring  down  misfortune  on  the  head  of  her  son. 

One  day,  when  Bonaparte  was  surrounded  by  his  family, 
he  placed  the  little  Napoleon  between  his  knees,  and  said, 
while  playing  with  him,  "  Do  you  know,  my  little  fellow, 
that  you  run  the  risk  of  being  a  king  some  day  ? "  "  And 
Achille?"*  immediately  asked  Murat,  who  was  present. 
*  Achille  was  the  eldest  son  of  Murat. 


14:8  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

"  Oh,  Achille,"  answered  Bonaparte,  "  will  be  a  great  sol- 
dier." This  reply  incensed  Mme.  Murat;  but  Bonaparte, 
pretending  not  to  notice  her,  and  stung  by  his  brother's 
opposition,  which  he  believed  with  reason  to  have  been 
prompted  by  Mme.  Murat,  went  on  to  say  to  his  little  step- 
grandson,  "  And  mind,  my  poor  child,  I  advise  you,  if  you 
value  your  life,  not  to  accept  invitations  to  dine  with  your 
cousins." 

We  may  imagine  to  what  feelings  such  bitter  words 
would  give  rise.  From  that  moment  Louis  Bonaparte  was 
beset  by  his  family,  who  adroitly  reminded  him  of  the  ru- 
mors respecting  his  wife,  and  that  he  ought  not  to  sacrifice 
the  interests  of  his  own  kinsfolk  to  those  of  a  child  who  was 
at  least  half  a  Beauharnais ;  and,  as  Louis  Bonaparte  was  not 
quite  so  destitute  of  ambition  as  people  have  since  made  him 
out,  he,  like  Joseph,  went  to  the  First  Consul  to  ask  why 
the  sacrifice  of  his  own  rights  should  be  demanded  of  him. 
"  Why;"  said  he,  "  should  I  yield  my  share  of  inheritance  to 
my  son  ?  How  have  I  deserved  to  be  cut  off  ?  What  will 
my  position  be  when  this  child,  having  become  yours,  finds 
himself  very  much  higher  placed  than  I,  and  quite  indepen- 
dent of  me,  standing  next  to  yourself,  and  regarding  me 
with  suspicion,  if  not  with  contempt  ?  ~No  ;  I  will  never 
consent  to  this ;  and,  rather  than  renounce  the  proper  course 
of  succession  to  the  royalty  which  is  to  be  yours,  rather  than 
consent  to  humble  myself  before  my  own  son,  I  will  leave 
France,  taking  Napoleon  with  me,  and  we  shall  see  whether 
you  will  dare  openly  to  take  a  child  from  his  father ! " 

The  First  Consul,  powerful  as  he  was,  found  it  impossi- 
ble to  overcome  his  brother's  opposition.  His  wrath  availed 
nothing,  and  he  was  obliged  to  yield,  for  fear  of  a  vexatious 
and  even  ridiculous  scandal ;  for  such  it  certainly  would  have 
been,  to  see  this  whole  family  quarreling  beforehand  over 
the  crown  which  France  had  not  yet  actually  conferred. 

The  strife  was  hushed  up,  and  Napoleon  was  obliged  to 
draw  up  the  scheme  of  succession,  and  the  possible  case  of 


PROJECT  OF  ADOPTING   YOUNG  NAPOLEON.    149 

adoption  which  he  reserved  to  himself  the  power  of  making, 
in  the  terms  to  be  found  in  the  decree  relating  to  the  eleva- 
tion of  the  First  Consul  to  the  Empire. 

These  quarrels  embittered  the  enmity  already  existing 
between  the  Bonapartes  and  the  Beauharnais.  The  former 
regarded  the  plan  of  adoption  as  the  result  of  Mme.  Bona-- 
parte's  scheming.  Louis  gave  stricter  orders  to  his  wife  than 
before  that  she  should  hold  no  familiar  intercourse  with  her 
mother.  "  If  you  consult  her  interests  at  the  cost  of  mine," 
he  told  her  harshly,  "I  swear  to  you  that  I  will  make  you 
repent.  I  will  separate  you  from  your  son ;  I  will  shut  you 
up  in  some  out-of-the-way  place,  and  no  power  on  earth  shall 
deliver  you.  You  shall  pay  for  your  concessions  to  your  own 
family  by  the  wretchedness  of  the  rest  of  your  life.  And 
take  care,  above  all,  that  none  of  my  threats  reach  the  ears 
of  my  brother.  Even  his  power  should  not  save  you  from 
my  anger." 

Mme.  Louis  bowed  her  head,  a  patient  victim  to  this  vio- 
lence. She  was  then  expecting  the  birth  of  her  second  child. 
Grief  and  anxiety  told  upon  her  health,  which  was  perma- 
nently injured ;  the  fresh  complexion,  her  only  beauty,  dis- 
appeared. She  had  possessed  natural  spirits,  but  they  now 
died  away  for  ever ;  and  she  became  silent  and  timid.  She 
refrained  from  confiding  her  troubles  to  her  mother,  whose 
indiscretion  and  hasty  temper  she  dreaded;  and  neither 
would  she  further  irritate  the  First  Consul.  He,  knowing 
well  his  brother's  character,  felt  grateful  to  her  for  her  reti- 
cence, and  guessed  at  the  sufferings  she  had  to  endure.  From 
that  time  forth  he  never  let  an  opportunity  pass  without  ex- 
hibiting the  interest — I  may  even  say  the  respect — with  which 
the  mild  and  prudent  demeanor  of  his  stepdaughter  inspired 
him. 

What  I  have  just  said  is  quite  opposed  to  the  general 
opinion  which  has  unfortunately  been  entertained  of  this 
unhappy  woman;  but  her  vindictive  sisters-in-law  never 
missed  an  opportunity  of  injuring  her  reputation  by  the 


150  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RJ&MUSAT. 

most  odious  calumnies,  and,  as  she  bore  the  name  of  Bona- 
parte, the  public,  who,  when  they  came  to  hate  the  Imperial 
despotism,  included  every  one  belonging  to  the  family  in 
their  impartial  contempt,  readily  believed  every  calumny 
against  Mme.  Louis.  Her  husband  (whose  ill  treatment  rof 
her  irritated  him  all  the  more  against  her),  obliged  to  own 
that  she  could  not  love  him  after  the  tyranny  he  had  exer- 
cised, jealous  with  the  jealousy  of  pride,  and  naturally  suspi- 
cious, embittered  by  ill  health,  and  utterly  selfish,  made  her 
feel  the  full  weight  of  conjugal  despotism.  She  was  sur- 
rounded by  spies ;  her  letters  were  opened  before  they  reached 
her  hands ;  her  conversations  even  with  female  friends  were 
resented ;  and,  if  she  complained  of  this  insulting  severity, 
he  would  say  to  her,  "  You  can  not  love  me.  You  are  a 
woman — consequently  a  being  all  made  up  of  evil  and  deceit ; 
you  are  the  daughter  of  an  unprincipled  mother ;  you  belong 
to  a  family  that  I  loathe.  Are  not  these  reasons  enough  for 
me  to  suspect  you  ?  " 

Mme.  Louis,  from  whom  I  obtained  these  details  long 
afterward,  found  her  only  comfort  in  the  affection  of  her 
brother,  whose  conduct,  though  jealously  watched  by  the 
Bonapartes,  was  unassailable.  Eugene,  who  was  simple  and 
frank,  light-hearted,  and  open  in  all  his  dealings,  displaying 
no  ambition,  holding  himself  aloof  from  every  intrigue,  and 
doing  his  duty  wherever  he  was  placed,  disarmed  calumny 
before  it  could  reach  him,  and  knew  nothing  of  all  that  took 
place  in  the  palace.  His  sister  loved  him  passionately,  and 
confided  her  sorrows  to  him  only,  during  the  few  moments 
that  the  jealous  watchfulness  of  Louis  allowed  them  to  pass 
together. 

Meanwhile,  the  First  Consul,  having  complained  to  the 
Elector  of  Bavaria  of  the  correspondence  which  Mr.  Drake 
kept  up  in  France,  and  this  English  gentleman  entertaining 
some  apprehensions  as  to  his  own  safety,  as  did  also  Sir  Spen- 
cer Smith,  the  British  Envoy  at  the  Court  of  "Wiirtemberg, 
they  both  suddenly  disappeared.  Lord  Morpeth  asked  the 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  EMPIRE. 

Government,  in  the  House  of  Commons,  for  an  explanation 
of  Drake's  conduct.  The  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer  re- 
plied that  the  envoy  had  been  given  authority  for  his  pro- 
ceedings, and  that  a  fuller  explanation  should  be  afforded 
when  the  ambassador  had  furnished  the  information  that  had 
been  demanded  from  him. 

At  this  time  Bonaparte  held  long  and  frequent  consulta- 
tions with  M.  de  Talleyrand.  The  latter,  whose  opinions  were 
essentially  monarchical,  urged  the  Consul  to  change  his  title 
to  that  of  King.  He  has  since  owned  to  me  that  the  name 
of  Emperor  alarmed  him ;  it  conveyed  a  sense  of  vagueness 
and  immensity,  which  was  precisely  what  charmed  the  imagi- 
nation of  Bonaparte.  He  added,  "A  combination  of  the 
Roman  Republic  and  of  Charlemagne  in  the  title  turned  his 
head.  I  amused  myself  one  day  by  mystifying  Berthier.  I 
took  him  aside,  and  said  to  him,  '  You  know  of  the  great 
scheme  that  is  occupying  us.  Go  to  the  Consul,  and  urge 
him  to  take  the  title  of  King ;  it  will  please  him.'  Accord- 
ingly Berthier,  who  was  delighted  to  have  an  opportunity  of 
speaking  to  Bonaparte  on  an  agreeable  subject,  went  up  to 
him  at  the  other  end  of  the  room  in  which  we  were  all  as- 
sembled, and  I  drew  back  a  little,  foreseeing  the  storm.  Ber- 
thier began  his  little  speech,  but  at  the  word  'King'  Bona- 
parte's eyes  flashed  fire ;  he  seized  Berthier  by  the  throat, 
and  pushed  him  back  against  the  wall.  'You  idiot!'  he 
said ;  '  who  has  been  advising  you  to  come  here  and  excite 
my  anger  ?  Another  time,  don't  take  such  a  task  on  your- 
self.' Poor  Berthier,  in  dire  confusion,  looked  piteously  at 
me,  and  it  was  a  long  time  before  he  forgave  my  sorry  jest." 

At  last,  on  April  30,  1804,  the  tribune  Curee,  who  had 
no  doubt  learnt  his  part,  and  who,  later  on,  was  rewarded 
for  his  complaisance  by  being  created  a  senator,  made  what 
was  then  called  "  a  motion  of  order  "  in  the  Tribunate,  de- 
manding that  the  government  of  the  Republic  should  be  con- 
fided to  an  Emperor,  and  that  the  Empire  should  be  made 
hereditary  in  the  family  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  His  speech 


152  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

was  effective.  He  regarded  an  hereditary  succession,  he 
said,  as  a  guarantee  against  plots  from  without,  and  that  in 
reality  the  title  of  Emperor  only  meant  "  Yictorious  Consul." 
Nearly  all  the  tribunes  put  down  their  names  to  speak.  A 
commission  of  thirteen  members  was  appointed.  Carnot 
alone  had  the  courage  to  protest  against  this  proposal.  He 
declared  that  he  would  vote  against  an  Empire,  for  the  same 
reason  that  he  had  voted  against  a  life  Consulship,  but  with- 
out any  personal  animosity,  and  that  he  was  quite  prepared 
to  render  obedience  to  the  Emperor  should  he  be  elected. 
He  spoke  in  high  praise  of  the  American  form  of  govern- 
ment, and  added  that  Bonaparte  might  have  adopted  it  at 
the  time  of  the  treaty  of  Amiens ;  that  the  abuses  of  despot- 
ism led  to  worse  results  than  the  abuses  of  liberty  ;  and  that, 
before  smoothing  the  way  to  this  despotism,  which  would  be 
all  the  more  dangerous  because  it  was  reared  on  military  suc- 
cess, it  would  have  been  advisable  to  create  institutions  for 
its  due  repression.  Notwithstanding  Carnot's  opposition,  the 
motion  was  put  to  the  vote  and  adopted. 

On  May  4th  a  deputation  from  the  Tribunate  carried  it 
to  the  Senate,  who  were  already  prepared  for  it.  The  Yice- 
President,  Frangois  de  Neufchateau,  replied  that  the  Senate 
had  expected  the  vote,  and  would  take  it  into  consideration. 
At  the  same  sitting  it  was  decided  that  the  motion  of  the 
Tribunate  and  the  answer  of  the  Yice-President  should  be 
laid  before  the  First  Consul. 

On  May  5th  the  Senate  sent  an  address  to  Bonaparte, 
asking  him,  without  further  explanation,  for  a  final  act 
which  would  insure  the  future  peace  of  France.  His  answer 
to  this  address  may  be  read  in  the  "Moniteur."  "I  beg 
you,"  he  said,  "to  let  me  know  your  entire  purpose.  I 
desire  that  we  may  be  able  to  say  to  the  French  nation  on 
the  14th  of  next  July,  'The  possessions  that  you  acquired 
fifteen  years  ago,  liberty,  equality,  and  glory,  are  now  be- 
yond the  reach  of  every  storm."  In  reply,  the  Senate  voted 
unanimously  for  imperial  government,  adding  that,  in  the 


FOUNDATION  OF  TEE  EMPIRE.  153 

interests  of  the  French  people,  it  was  important  that  it 
should  be  intrusted  to  Napoleon  Bonaparte. 

After  May  8th  addresses  from  the  towns  poured  in  at 
Saint  Cloud.  An  address  from  Lyons  came  first;  a  little 
later  came  those  from  Paris  and  other  places.  At  the  same 
time  came  the  vote  from  Klein's  division,*  and  then  one 
from  the  troops  in  camp  at  Montreuil  under  the  orders  of 
General  Ney ;  f  and  the  other  divisions  promptly  followed 
these  examples.  M.  de  Fontanes  addressed  the  First  Consul 
in  the  name  of  the  Corps  Le*gislatif,  which  at  this  moment 
was  not  sitting;  but  those  among  its  members  who  were 
then  in  Paris  met,  and  voted  as  the  Senate  had  done.  The 
excitement  that  these  events  caused  at  Saint  Cloud  may 
readily  be  imagined. 

I  have  already  recorded  the  disappointment  which  Louis 
Bonaparte's  rejection  of  the  project  of  adoption  had  inflicted 
on  his  mother-in-law.  She  still  hoped,  however,  that  the 
First  Consul  would  contrive,  if  he  himself  remained  in  the 
same  mind,  to  overcome  the  opposition  of  his  brother ;  and 
she  expressed  to  me  her  delight  that  her  husband's  new  pros- 
pects had  not  induced  him  to  reconsider  the  terrible  question 
of  the  divorce.  Whenever  Bonaparte  was  displeased  with 
his  brothers,  Mme.  Bonaparte  always  rose  in  his  estimation, 
because  he  found  consolation  in  the  unfailing  sweetness  of 
her  disposition.  She  never  tried  to  extract  from  him  any 
promise  either  for  herself  or  for  her  children ;  and  the  confi- 
dence she  showed  in  his  affection,  together  with  the  disin- 
terestedness of  Eugene,  when  contrasted  with  the  exactions 
of  the  Bonaparte  family,  could  not  fail  to  please  him.  Mme. 
Bacciochi  and  Murat,  who  were  in  great  anxiety  about  com- 
ing events,  endeavored  to  worm  out  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  or 
out  of  Fouche*,  the  secret  projects  of  the  First  Consul,  so 
that  they  might  know  what  to  expect.  Their  perturbation 

*  General  Klein  afterward  married  the  daughter  of  the  Countess  d'Arberg,  a 
lady-in-waiting.     He  was  created  senator,  and  remained  a  peer  under  the  King, 
t  Afterward  Marshal  Ney. 


154  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU8AT. 

was  beyond  their  power  to  conceal ;  and  it  was  with  some 
amusement  that  I  detected  it  in  their  troubled  glances  and 
in  every  word  they  let  fall. 

At  last  we  were  told,  one  evening,  that  on  the  following 
day  the  Senate  was  to  come  in  great  state  and  lay  before 
Bonaparte  the  decree  which  should  give  him  a  crown. 
When  I  recall  that  evening,  the  emotions  I  experienced  on 
hearing  the  news  return  to  me.  The  First  Consul,  when  in- 
forming his  wife  of  the  coming  event,  had  told  her  he  in- 
tended to  surround  himself  with  a  more  numerous  Court, 
but  that  he  would  fitly  distinguish  between  the  new-comers 
and  those  old  servants  who  had  first  devoted  themselves  to  his 
service.  He  particularly  desired  her  to  assure  M.  de  Re- 
musat  and  me  of  his  good  will  toward  us.  I  have  already 
told  how  he  bore  with  the  anguish  which  I  was  unable  to 
hide  on  the  occasion  of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien. 
His  indulgence  on  this  point  did  not  diminish ;  perhaps  it 
amused  him  to  pry  into  my  secret  feelings,  and  gradually  to 
appease  them  by  such  marked  kindness  that  it  revived  my 
flagging  attachment  to  him. 

I  could  not  as  yet  overcome  my  feelings  toward  him.  I 
grieved  over  his  great  fault ;  but  when  I  saw  that  he  was,  so 
to  speak,  a  better  man  than  formerly,  though  I  believed  he 
had  made  a  fatal  mistake,  I  felt  grateful  to  him  for  keeping 
his  word  and  being  gentle  and  kind  afterward,  as  he  had 
promised.  The  fact  is  that  at  this  period  he  could  not  afford 
to  dispense  with  anybody,  and  he  therefore  neglected  no 
means  of  success.  His  dexterous  behavior  toward  M.  de 
Caulaincourt  had  won  him  over  so  that  he  had  gradually  re- 
covered his  former  serenity  of  mind,  and  was  at  this  epoch 
one  of  the  confidants  of  the  First  Consul's  schemes.  Bona- 
parte, having  questioned  his  wife  as  to  what  each  person  at 
Court  had  said  at  the  time  of  the  prince's  death,  learned  from 
her  that  M.  de  Bemusat,  who  was  habitually  reticent  both 
from  inclination  and  from  prudence,  but  who  always  spoke 
the  truth  when  asked,  had  not  hesitated  to  own  his  indigna- 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  EMPIRE.  155 

tion.  Being  apparently  resolved  that  nothing  should  irritate 
him,  he  broached  the  subject  to  M.  de  Remusat,  and,  having 
revealed  to  him  as  much  of  his  policy  as  he  thought  proper, 
succeeded  in  convincing  my  husband  that  he  had  really  be- 
lieved the  Duke's  death  indispensable  to  the  safety  of  France. 
My  husband,  when  repeating  this  conversation  to  me,  said, 
"  I  am  far  from  agreeing  with  him  that  this  deed  of  blood 
was  needed  to  establish  his  authority,  and  I  did  not  hesitate 
to  tell  him  so ;  but  I  own  that  it  is  a  relief  to  me  to  think 
that  he  did  not  commit  the  crime  out  of  revenge.  He  is 
evidently  distressed,  no  matter  what  he  may  say,  by  the  ef- 
fect it  has  produced ;  and  I  believe  he  will  never  again  seek 
to  strengthen  his  authority  by  such  terrible  means.  I  did 
not  neglect  to  point  out  to  him  that  in  an  age  like  ours,  and 
in  a  nation  like  ours,  it  is  playing  a  dangerous  game  to  rule 
by  terror  and  bloodshed ;  and  I  think  that  the  earnest  atten- 
tion with  which  he  listened  to  me  augurs  well  for  the  future." 

This  sincere  avowal  of  what  we  both  felt  shows  how  much 
need  we  had  of  hope.  Severe  judges  of  other  people  might 
blame  us,  no  doubt,  for  the  facility  with  which  we  again  de- 
ceived ourselves,  and  impute  our  credulity,  with  apparent 
justice,  to  our  own  position  in  the  Court.  Ah !  it  is  so  hard  to 
have  to  blush  in  secret  for  the  calling  one  has  chosen,  it  is  so 
pleasant  to  like  one's  self-imposed  duties,  it  is  so  natural  to 
paint  in  bright  colors  one's  own  and  one's  country's  future, 
that  it  is  only  after  a  long  struggle  the  conviction  of  a  truth 
which  must  shatter  one's  whole  life  is  admitted.  Such  a 
truth  did  come  home  to  us,  slowly,  but  with  a  strength  that 
could  not  be  gainsaid ;  and  we  paid  dearly  for  an  error  to 
which  all  well-disposed  persons  clung  as  long  as  possible. 

On  May  18, 1804,  the  Second  Consul,  Cambace*res,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Senate,  came  to  Saint  Cloud,  accompanied  by  all 
the  senators  and  escorted  by  a  large  body  of  troops.  He 
made  a  set  speech,  and  gave  to  Bonaparte  for  the  first  time 
the  title  of  "Your  Majesty."  Bonaparte  took  it  calmly,  just 
as  though  he  had  borne  it  all  his  life.  The  Senate  then  pro- 


156  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

ceeded  to  the  apartment  of  Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  in  her  turn 
was  proclaimed  Empress.  She  replied  with  that  natural 
grace  which  always  raised  her  to  the  level  of  any  position, 
however  lofty,  in  which  she  might  be  placed. 

At  the  same  time,  the  Grand  Dignitaries,  as  they  were 
called,  were  created — Grand  Elector,  Joseph  Bonaparte; 
High  Constable,  Louis  Bonaparte  ;  Arch-Chancellor  of  the 
Empire,  Cambaceres ;  Arch-Treasurer,  Lebrun.  The  Minis- 
ters, Maret  (the  Secretary  of  State,  who  ranked  with  the 
Ministers),  the  Colonels-general  of  the  Guards,  Duroc  (the 
Governor  of  the  Palace),  and  the  aides-de-camp  took  the 
oaths;  and  the  next  day  the  officers  of  the  army,  among 
whom  was  Colonel  Eugene  Beauharnais,  were  presented  to 
the  Emperor  by  the  new  Constable. 

The  opposition  which  Bonaparte  had  encountered  in  his 
own  family,  to  his  intended  adoption  of  the  little  Louis,  in- 
duced him  to  postpone  that  project.  The  succession  was 
therefore  declared  to  belong  to  the  heirs  male  of  Napoleon 
Bonaparte,  and  failing  these,  to  the  sons  of  Joseph  and  of 
Louis,  who  were  created  Imperial  Princes.  The  organic 
senatus  consultum  declared  that  the  Emperor  might  adopt 
as  his  successor  any  one  of  his  nephews  whom  he  chose,  but 
not  until  the  selected  individual  had  reached  the  age  of 
eighteen,  and  that  no  further  act  of  adoption  could  take  place 
in  the  family. 

The  civil  list  was  to  be  the  same  as  that  granted  to  the 
King  in  1791,  and  the  princes  were  to  be  endowed  in  accord- 
ance with  the  law  of  December  20,  1791.  The  great  digni- 
taries were  to  have  one  third  of  the  sum  settled  on  the 
princes.  They  were  to  preside  over  the  electoral  colleges  of 
the  six  largest  towns  in  the  Empire,  and  the  princes,  from 
the  eighteenth  year  of  their  age,  were  to  be  permanent  mem- 
bers of  the  Senate  and  the  Council  of  State. 

Fourteen  Marshals  of  France  were  created  at  this  date, 
and  the  title  of  Marshal  was  conferred  on  four  of  the  Sena- 
tors. The  new  Marshals  were  Berthier,  Murat,  Moncey, 


FOUNDATION  OF  THE  EMPIRE.  157 

Jourdan,  Massena,  Augereau,  Bernadotte,  Soult,  Brune, 
Lannes,  Mortier,  Ney,  Davoust,  Bessieres ;  the  four  Senators 
were  Kellermann,  Lefebvre,  Perignon,  and  Semirier. 

An  article  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  apprised  the  public  that 
the  title  of  Imperial  Highness  was  to  be  given  to  the  princes, 
that  of  Serene  Highness  and  Monseigneur  to  the  great  dig- 
nitaries ;  that  the  Ministers  were  to  be  called  Monseigneur 
by  public  officials  and  all  petitioners,  and  the  Marshals  Mon- 
sieur le  Marechal. 

Thus  disappeared  the  title  of  "  Citizen,"  which  had  long 
since  been  disused  in  society,  where  "Monsieur"  had  re- 
sumed its  former  place,  but  which  Bonaparte  was  always 
most  careful  to  employ.  On  the  same  day,  the  18th  of  May, 
his  brothers,  with  Cambaceres  and  Lebrun  and  the  officers  of 
his  household,  were  invited  to  dine  with  him,  and  we  heard 
him  use  the  old  word  "  Monsieur  "  for  the  first  time,  without 
being  betrayed  by  habit  into  saying  "  Citizen  "  even  once. 

Titles  were  also  accorded  to  the  great  officers  of  the  Em- 
pire, eight  inspectors  and  colonels-general  of  artillery,  engi- 
neers, cavalry,  and  the  navy,  and  the  great  civil  officers  of 
the  Crown,  to  whom  I  shall  refer  hereafter. 


CHAPTEK  VIL 

Effects  and  Causes  of  the  Accession  of  Bonaparte  to  the  Imperial  Throne — The 
Emperor  converses— The  Grievances  of  Mme.  Murat— The  Character  of  M.  de 
Ke"musat— The  New  Court. 

THE  accession  of  Bonaparte  to  the  Imperial  throne  was 
very  variously  regarded  in  Europe,  and  even  in  France  opin- 
ions were  divided.  It  is,  however,  quite  certain  that  it  did 
not  displease  the  great  majority  of  the  nation.  The  Jaco- 
bins were  not  astonished  by  it,  for  they  themselves  were  in 
the  habit  of  pushing  success  as  far  as  it  would  go,  whenever 
luck  favored  them.  Among  the  Royalists  it  spread  disheart- 
enment,  and  that  was  just  what  Bonaparte  wanted.  The 
exchange  of  the  Consulate  for  Imperial  authority  was,  how- 
ever, regarded  with  dislike  by  all  true  friends  of  liberty. 
These  true  friends  were,  unfortunately,  divided  into  two 
classes,  so  that  their  influence  was  diminished — an  evil  which 
still  exists.  One  class  regarded  the  change  of  the  reigning 
dynasty  with  indifference,  and  would  have  accepted  Bona- 
parte as  readily  as  another,  provided  that  he  had  received  his 
royal  authority  in  right  of  a  constitution  which  would  have 
restrained  as  well  as  founded  it.  They  regarded  the  seizure 
of  power  by  an  enterprising  and  warlike  man  with  serious 
apprehension;  for  it  was  plain  enough  that  the  so-called 
"  bodies  of  the  State,"  which  were  already  reduced  to  insig- 
nificance, would  be  unable  to  check  his  encroachments.  The 
Senate  seemed  to  be  given  over  to  mere  passive  obedience  ; 
the  Tribunate  was  shaken  to  its  foundations  ;  and  what  was 
to  be  expected  from  a  silent  Corps  Legislatif  ?  The  Minis- 
ters, deprived  of  all  responsibility,  were  no  more  than  head 


EFFECTS  AND   CAUSES  OF  THE  ACCESSION.     159 

clerks,  and  it  was  evident  beforehand  that  the  Council  of 
State  would  henceforth  be  merely  a  storehouse,  whence  such 
laws  as  circumstances  might  demand  could  be  taken,  as  occa- 
sion for  them  arose. 

If  this  section  of  the  friends  of  liberty  had  been  more 
numerous  and  better  led,  it  might  have  set  itself  to  demand 
the  settled  and  legitimate  exercise  of  its  rights,  which  is 
never  demanded  in  vain  by  a  nation  in  the  long  run.  There 
existed,  however,  a  second  party,  which  agreed  with  the  first 
on  fundamental  principles  only,  and,  abiding  by  theories  of 
its  own,  which  it  had  already  attempted  to  practice  in  a  dan- 
gerous and  sanguinary  manner,  lost  the  opportunity  of  pro- 
ducing an  effective  opposition.  To  this  section  belonged  the 
proselytes  of  the  Anglo-American  Government,  who  had 
disgusted  the  nation  with  the  notion  of  liberty. 

They  had  witnessed  the  creation  of  the  Consulate  without 
any  protest,  for  it  was  a  tolerably  fair  imitation  of  the  Presi- 
dentship of  the  United  States ;  they  believed,  or  wished  to 
believe,  that  Bonaparte  would  maintain  that  equality  of  rights 
to  which  they  attached  so  much  importance,  and  some  among^ 
them  were  really  deceived.  I  say  "  some,"  because  I  think 
the  greater  number  fell  into  a  trap,  baited  with  flattery  and 
consultations  on  all  sorts  of  matters,  which  Bonaparte  dex- 
terously set  for  them.  If  they  had  not  had  some  private 
interest  to  serve  by  deceiving  themselves,  how  could  they 
have  declared  afterward  that  they  had  approved  of  Bona- 
parte only  as  Consul,  but  that  as  Emperor  he  was  odious  to 
them?  In  what  respect  was  he,  while  Consul,  different 
from  his  ordinary  self  ?  What  was  his  Consular  authority 
but  dictatorship  under  another  name  ?  Did  he  not,  as  Con- 
sul, make  peace  and  declare  war  without  consulting  the* 
nation  ?  Did  not  the  right  of  levying  the  conscription  de- 
volve upon  him  ?  Did  he  permit  freedom  in  the  discussion 
of  affairs  ?  Could  any  journal  publish  a  single  article  with- 
out his  approval  ?  Did  he  not  make  it  perfectly  clear  that 
he  held  his  power  by  the  right  of  his  victorious  arms  ?  Howy 


160  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K^MUSAT. 

then,  could  stern  Republicans  have  allowed  him  to  take  them 
by  surprise  ? 

I  can  understand  how  it  was  that  men,  worn  out  by  the 
turmoil  of  the  Revolution,  and  afraid  of  that  liberty  which 
had  been  so  long  associated  with  death,  looked  for  repose 
under  the  dominion  of  an  able  ruler,  on  whom  fortune  was 
seemingly  resolved  to  smile.  I  can  conceive  that  they 
regarded  his  elevation  as  a  decree  of  destiny,  and  fondly 
believed  that  in  the  irrevocable  they  should  find  peace.  I 
may  confidently  assert  that  those  persons  believed  quite  sin- 
cerely that  Bonaparte,  whether  as  Consul  or  as  Emperor, 
would  exert  his  authority  to  oppose  the  attempts  of  faction, 
and  would  save  us  from  the  perils  of  anarchy. 

None  dared  to  utter  the  word  Republic,  so  deeply  had 
the  Terror  stained  that  name,  and  the  Directorial  govern- 
ment had  perished  in  the  contempt  with  which  its  chiefs 
were  regarded.  The  return  of  the  Bourbons  could  only  be 
brought  about  by  the  aid  of  a  revolution  ;  and  the  slightest 
disturbance  terrified  the  French  people,  in  whom  enthusiasm 
of  every  kind  seemed  to  be  dead.  Besides,  the  men  in  whom 
they  had  trusted  had,  one  after  the  other,  deceived  them ; 
and  as,  this  time,  they  were  yielding  to  force,  they  were  at 
least  certain  that  they  were  not  deceiving  themselves. 

The  belief,  or  rather  the  error,  that  only  despotism  could 
at  that  epoch  maintain  order  in  France,  was  very  widespread. 
It  became  the  mainstay  of  Bonaparte  ;  and  it  is  due  to  him 
to  say  that  he  also  held  it.  The  factions  played  into  his 
hands  by  imprudent  attempts  which  he  turned  to  his  own 
advantage  ;  he  had  some  grounds  for  his  belief  that  he  was 
necessary ;  France  believed  it  too ;  and  he  even  succeeded 
in  persuading  foreign  sovereigns  that  he  formed  a  barrier 
against  Republican  influences,  which,  but  for  him,  might 
spread  widely.  At  the  moment  when  Bonaparte  placed  the 
Imperial  crown  upon  his  head,  there  was  not  a  king  in  Eu- 
rope who  did  not  believe  that  he  wore  his  own  crown  more 
securely  because  of  that  event.  Had  the  new  Emperor  added 


EFFECTS  AND   CAUSES  OF  THE  ACCESSION.     161 

to  that  decisive  act  the  gift  of  a  liberal  constitution,  the 
peace  of  nations  and  of  kings  might,  in  sober  seriousness, 
have  been  for  ever  secured. 

Sincere  defenders  of  Bonaparte's  original  system — and 
some  of  these  still  exist — advance,  in  justification  of  it,  that 
we  could  not  have  exacted  from  him  that  which  it  belongs 
only  to  a  legitimate  sovereign  to  bestow ;  that  freedom  to 
discuss  our  interests  might  have  been  followed  by  the  dis- 
cussion of  our  rights ;  that  England,  jealous  of  our  reviving 
prosperity,  would  have  fomented  fresh  disturbances  among 
us ;  that  our  princes  had  not  abandoned  their  designs,  and 
that  the  slow  methods  of  constitutional  government  would 
not  have  availed  to  restrain  the  contending  factions.  Hume 
says,  when  speaking  of  Cromwell,  that  it  is  a  great  difficulty 
for  a  usurping  government  that  its  personal  policy  is  gener- 
ally opposed  to  the  interest  of  its  country.  This  gives  a  su- 
periority to  hereditary  authority,  of  which  it  would  be  well 
that  nations  should  be  convinced.  But,  after  all,  Bonaparte 
was  not  an  ordinary  usurper ;  his  elevation  offered  no  point 
of  comparison  with  that  of  Cromwell.  "  I  found  the  crown 
of  France  lying  on  the  ground,"  said  he,  "  and  I  took  it  up 
on  the  point  of  my  sword."  He  was  the  product  of  an  in- 
evitable revolution ;  but  he  had  no  share  in  its  disasters,  and 
I  sincerely  believe  that,  until  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien, 
it  would  have  been  possible  for  him  to  legitimize  his  power 
by  conferring  upon  France  benefits  of  a  kind  which  would 
have  pledged  the  nation  to  him  and  his  for  ever. 

His  despotic  ambition  misled  him ;  but,  I  say  it  again,  he 
was  not  the  only  one  who  went  astray.  He  was  beguiled  by 
appearances  which  he  did  not  take  the  trouble  to  investigate. 
The  word  "  liberty  "  did  indeed  resound  in  the  air  about  him, 
but  those  who  uttered  it  were  not  held  in  sufficient  esteem 
by  the  nation  to  be  made  its  representatives  to  him.  Well- 
meaning,  honest  folk  asked  nothing  of  him  but  repose,  and 
did  not  trouble  themselves  about  the  form  under  which  it 
was  to  be  granted.  And  then,  he  knew  well  that  the  secret 


162  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

weakness  of  the  French  nation  was  vanity,  and  he  saw  a 
means  of  gratifying  it  easily  by  the  pomp  and  display  that 
attend  on  monarchical  power.  He  revived  distinctions  which 
were  now,  in  reality,  democratic,  because  they  were  placed 
within  the  reach  of  all  and  entailed  no  privileges.  The 
eagerness  displayed  in  the  pursuit  of  these  titles,  and  of 
crosses,  which  were  objects  of  derision  while  they  hung  on 
the  coats  of  one's  neighbors,  was  not  likely  to  undeceive 
him,  if  indeed  he  was  on  the  wrong  road.  Was  it  not  natu- 
ral, on  the  contrary,  that  he  should  applaud  and  congratulate 
himself,  when  he  had  succeeded  in  bringing  feudal  and  re- 
publican pretensions  to  the  same  level  by  the  assistance  of  a 
few  bits  of  ribbons  and  some  words  added  to  men's  names  ? 
Had  not  we  ourselves  much  to  do  with  that  notion  which  be- 
came so  firmly  fixed  in  his  mind,  that,  for  his  own  safety  and 
for  ours,  he  ought  to  use  the  power  which  he  possessed  to 
suspend  the  Revolution  without  destroying  it  ?  "  My  suc- 
cessor," said  he,  "  whoever  he  may  be,  will  be  forced  to  march 
with  his  own  times,  and  to  find  his  support  in  liberal  opin- 
ions. I  will  bequeath  them  to  him,  but  deprived  of  their 
primitive  asperity."  France  imprudently  applauded  this 
idea. 

Nevertheless,  a  warning  voice — that  of  conscience  for 
him,  that  of  our  interests  for  us — spoke  to  him  and  to  us 
alike.  If  he  would  silence  that  importunate  whisper,  he 
would  have  to  dazzle  us  by  a  series  of  surprising  feats. 
Hence  those  interminable  wars,  whose  duration  was  so  all- 
important  to  him  that  he  always  called  the  peace  which  he 
signed  "  a  halt,"  and  hence  the  fact  that  into  every  one  of 
his  treaties  he  was  forced  by  M.  de  Talleyrand's  skill  in  nego- 
tiation. When  he  returned  to  Paris,  and  resumed  the'  admin- 
istration of  the  affairs  of  France,  in  addition  to  the  fact  that 
he  did  not  know  what  to  do  with  an  army  whose  demands 
grew  with  its  victories,  he  had  to  encounter  the  dumb  but 
steady  and  inevitable  resistance  which  the  spirit  of  the  age, 
in  spite  of  individual  proclivities,  opposes  to  despotism ;  so 


EFFECTS  AND   CAUSES  OF  THE  ACCESSION.     163 

that  despotism  has  happily  become  an  impracticable  mode  of 
government.  It  died  with  the  good  fortune  of  Bonaparte, 
when,  as  Mme.  de  Stael  said,  "  The  terrible  mace  which  he 
alone  could  wield  fell  at  last  upon  his  own  head."  Happy, 
thrice  happy,  are  the  days  in  which  we  are  now  living,  since 
we  have  exhausted  every  experiment,  and  only  madmen  can 
dispute  the  road  which  leads  to  safety. 

Bonaparte  was  seconded  for  a  long  time  by  the  military 
ardor  of  the  youth  of  France.  That  insensate  passion  for 
conquest  which  has  been  implanted  by  an  evil  spirit  in  men 
collected  into  societies,  to  retard  the  progress  of  each  genera- 
tion in  every  kind  of  prosperity,  urged  us  forward  in  the 
path  of  Bonaparte's  career  of  devastation.  France  can  rarely 
resist  glory,  and  it  was  especially  tempting  when  it  covered 
and  disguised  the  humiliation  to  which  we  were  then  con- 
demned. When  Bonaparte  was  quiet,  he  let  us  perceive  the 
reality  of  our  servitude ;  when  our  sons  marched  away  to 
plant  our  standards  on  the  ramparts  of  all  the  great  cities  of 
Europe,  that  servitude  disappeared.  It  was  a  long  time  be- 
fore we  recognized  that  each  one  of  our  conquests  was  a  link 
in  the  chain  that  fettered  our  liberties ;  and,  when  we  became 
fully  aware  of  what  our  intoxication  had  led  us  into,  it  was 
too  late  for  resistance.  The  army  had  become  the  accom- 
plice of  tyranny,  had  broken  with  France,  and  would  treat 
a  cry  for  deliverance  as  revolt. 

The  greatest  of  Bonaparte's  errors — one  very  characteris- 
tic of  him — was  that  he  never  took  anything  but  success  into 
account  in  the  calculations  on  which  he  acted.  Perhaps  he 
was  more  excusable  than  another  would  have  been  in  doubt- 
ing whether  any  reverse  could  come  to  him.  His  natural 
pride  shrank  from  the  idea  of  a  defeat  of  any  kind.  There 
was  the  weak  point  in  his  strong  mind,  for  such  a  man  as  he 
ought  to  have  contemplated  every  contingency.  But,  as  he 
lacked  nobility  of  soul,  and  had  not  that  instinctive  elevation 
of  mind  which  rises  above  evil  fortune,  he  turned  his  thoughts 
away  from  this  weakness  in  himself,  and  contemplated  only 


164  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KfiMUSAT. 

his  wonderful  faculty  of  growing  greater  with  success.  "  / 
shall  succeed "  was  the  basis  of  all  his  calculations,  and  his 
obstinate  repetition  of  the  phrase  helped  him  to  realize  the 
prediction.  At  length  his  own  good  fortune  grew  into  a 
superstition  with  him,  and  his  worship  of  it  made  every  sac- 
rifice which  was  to  be  imposed  upon  us  fair  and  lawful  in  his 
eyes. 

And  we  ourselves — let  us  once  more  own  it — did  we  not 
at  first  share  this  baleful  superstition  ?  At  the  time  of  which 
I  write,  it  had  great  mastery  over  our  wonder-loving  imagina- 
tions. The  trial  of  General  Moreau  and  the  death  of  the  Due 
d'Enghien  had  shocked  every  one's  feelings,  but  had  not 
changed  public  opinion.  Bonaparte  scarcely  tried  to  conceal 
that  both  events  had  furthered  the  project  which  for  a  long 
time  past  he  had  been  maturing.  It  is  to  the  credit  of  hu- 
man nature  that  repugnance  to  crime  is  innate  among  us ; 
that  we  willingly  believe,  when  a  guilty  act  is  acknowledged 
by  its  perpetrator,  that  he  has  been  absolutely  forced  to 
commit  it;  and,  when  he  succeeded  in  raising  himself  by 
such  deeds,  we  too  readily  accepted  the  bargain  that  he  of- 
fered us — absolution  on  our  part,  as  the  guerdon  of  success 
on  his. 

Thenceforth  he  was  no  longer  beloved ;  but  the  days  in 
which  monarchs  reign  through  the  love  of  nations  are  gone 
by,  and,  when  Bonaparte  let  us  see  that  he  could  punish  even 
our  thoughts,  he  was  well  pleased  to  exchange  the  affection 
we  had  striven  to  retain  for  him  for  the  very  real  fear  that 
he  inspired.  We  admired,  or  at  least  we  wondered  at,  the 
boldness  of  the  game  which  he  was  openly  playing;  and 
when  at  last  he  sprang,  with  imposing  audacity,  from  the 
blood-stained  grave  at  Yincennes  to  the  steps  of  the  Imperial 
throne,  exclaiming,  "  I  have  won  ! "  France,  in  her  amaze- 
ment, could  but  reecho  his  words.  And  that  was  all  he 
wanted  her  do. 

A  few  days  after  Bonaparte  had  assumed  the  title  of 
Emperor  (by  which  I  shall  not  scruple  to  designate  him,  for, 


THE  EMPEROR  CONVERSES.  165 

after  all,  lie  bore  it  longer  than  that  of  Consul  *),  on  one  of 
those  occasions  when,  as  I  have  said  before,  he  was  disposed 
to  talk  freely  to  us,  he  was  discussing  his  new  position  with 
the  Empress,  my  husband,  and  myself.  I  think  I  see  him 
still,  in  the  window-recess  of  a  drawing-room  at  Saint  Cloud, 
astride  on  a  chair,  resting  his  chin  on  the  back  of  it.  Mme. 
Bonaparte  reclined  on  a  sofa  near  him ;  I  was  sitting  oppo- 
site him,  and  M.  de  Remusat  stood  behind  my  chair.  For  a 
long  time  the  Emperor  had  been  silent ;  then  he  suddenly 
addressed  me :  "  You  have  borne  me  a  grudge  for  the  death 
of  the  Due  d'Enghien?"  "It  is  true,  Sire,"  I  answered, 
"  and  I  still  bear  it  you.  I  believe  you  did  yourself  much 
harm  by  that  act."  "  But  are  you  aware  that  he  was  waiting 
at  the  frontier  for  me  to  be  assassinated  ? "  "  Possibly,  Sire ; 
but  still  he  was  not  in  France."  "  Ah  !  there  is  no  harm  in 
showing  other  countries,  now  and  then,  that  one  is  the  mas- 
ter." "  There,  Sire,  do  not  let  us  speak  of  it,  or  you  will 
make  me  cry."  "  Ah !  tears !  "Woman's  only  weapon.  That 
is  like  Josephine.  She  thinks  she  has  carried  her  point  when 
she  begins  to  cry.  Are  not  tears,  M.  de  Remusat,  the  strong- 
est argument  of  women?"  "Sire,"  replied  my  husband, 
"  there  are  tears  which  can  not  be  censured." 

"  All !  I  perceive  that  you  also  take  a  serious  view  of  the 
matter.  But  that  is  quite  natural ;  you  have  seen  other  days, 
all  of  you,  and  you  remember  them.  I  only  date  from  the 
day  when  I  began  to  be  somebody.  What  is  a  Due  d'En- 
ghien  to  me  3  Only  an  emigre,  more  important  than  the 
others — nothing  more.  But  that  was  enough  to  make  me 
strike  hard.  Those  crack-brained  Royalists  had  actually 
spread  a  report  that  I  was  to  replace  the  Bourbons  on  the 
throne.  The  Jacobins  became  alarmed,  and  they  sent  Fouche* 
to  me  to  inquire  into  my  intentions.  Power  has  for  the  last 
two  years  fallen  so  naturally  into  my  hands,  that  people  may 

*  This  remark  would  appear  a  strange  one,  if  the  reader  did  not  recollect 
that  the  Memoirs  were  written  under  the  Restoration,  when  the  wx)rds  Emperor, 
Empire,  and  Bonaparte  were  no  longer  uttered  in  good  society. — P.  R. 


166  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

well  have  doubted  sometimes  whether  I  had  any  serious  in- 
tention of  investing  myself  with  it  officially.  I  came  to  the 
conclusion  that  it  was  my  duty  to  profit  by  this,  in  order  to 
put  a  lawful  end  to  the  Revolution.  The  reason  why  I  chose 
Empire  rather  than  Dictatorship  is  because  one  becomes 
legitimate  by  taking  up  well-known  ground.  I  began  by 
trying  to  reconcile  the  two  contending  factions  at  the  time 
of  my  accession  to  the  Consulship.  I  thought  that,  in  estab- 
lishing order  by  means  of  permanent  institutions,  I  should 
put  an  end  to  their  enterprises ;  but  factions  are  not  to  be 
put  down  so  long  as  any  fear  of  them  is  shown,  and  every 
attempt  to  conciliate  them  looks  like  fear.  Besides,  it  may 
sometimes  be  possible  to  get  the  better  of  a  sentiment ;  but 
of  an  opinion,  never.  I  saw  clearly  that  I  could  make  no 
alliance  between  the  two,  but  that  I  might  make  one  with 
both  of  them  on  my  own  account.  The  Concordat  and  the 
permissions  to  return  have  conciliated  the  emigres,  and  I 
shall  soon  be  completely  reconciled  with  them  ;  for  you  will 
see  how  the  attractions  of  a  Court  will  allure  them.  The 
mere  phrases  that  recall  former  habits  will  win  over  the  no- 
bility, but  the  Jacobins  require  deeds.  They  are  not  men  to 
be  won  by  fair  words.  They  were  satisfied  with  my  neces- 
sary severity  when,  after  the  3d  Nivose,*  at  the  very  mo- 
ment of  a  purely  Royalist  conspiracy,  I  transported  a  number 
of  Jacobins.  They  might  justly  have  complained  if  I  had 
struck  a  weaker  blow.  You  all  thought  I  was  becoming 
cruel  and  bloodthirsty,  but  you  were  wrong.  I  have  no  feel- 
ings of  hatred — I  am  not  capable  of  acting  from  revenge ;  I 
only  sweep  obstacles  from  my  path,  and,  if  it  were  expedient, 
you  should  see  me  pardon  Georges  Cadoudal  to-morrow,  al- 
though he  came  simply  and  solely  to  assassinate  me. 

"  When  people  find  that  public  tranquillity  is  the  result 
of  the  event  in  question,  they  will  no  longer  reproach  me 
with  it,  and  in  a  year's  time  this  execution  will  be  regarded 
as  a  great  act  of  policy.  It  is  true,  however,  that  it  has 

*  The  epoch  of  the  "  infernal  machine." 


THE  EMPEROR  CONVERSES.  167 

driven  me  to  shorten  the  crisis.  What  I  have  just  done  I 
did  not  intend  to  do  for  two  years  yet.  I  meant  to  retain 
the  Consulate,  although  words  and  things  clash  with  one  an- 
other under  this  form  of  government,  and  the  signature  I 
affixed  to  all  the  acts  of  my  authority  was  the  sign  manual  of 
a  continual  lie.  We  should  have  got  on  nevertheless,  France 
and  I,  because  she  has  confidence  in  me,  and  what  I  will  she 
wills. 

"As,  however,  this  particular  conspiracy  was  meant  to 
shake  the  whole  of  Europe,  the  Eoyalists  and  also  Europe 
had  to  be  undeceived.  I  had  to  choose  between  continuous 
persecution  or  one  decisive  blow ;  and  my  decision  was  not 
doubtful.  I  have  for  ever  silenced  both  Royalists  and  Jaco- 
bins. Only  the  Republicans  remain — mere  dreamers,  who 
think  a  republic  can  be  made  out  of  an  old  monarchy,  and 
that  Europe  would  stand  by  and  let  us  quietly  found  a  fede- 
rative government  of  twenty  million  men.  The  Republicans 
I  shall  not  win,  but  they  are  few  in  number  and  not  impor- 
tant. The  rest  of  you  Frenchmen  like  a  monarchy ;  it  is  only 
the  government  that  pleases  you.  I  will  wager  that  you,  M. 
de  Remusat,  are  a  hundred  times  more  at  your  ease,  now 
that  you  call  me  Sire  and  that  I  address  you  as  Mon- 
sieur?" 

As  there  was  some  truth  in  this  remark,  my  husband 
laughed,  and  answered  that  certainly  the  sovereign  power  be- 
came his  Majesty  very  well. 

"  The  fact  is,"  resumed  the  Emperor,  good-humoredly,  "  I 
believe  I  should  not  know  how  to  obey.  I  recollect,  at  the 
time  of  the  Treaty  of  Campo  Formio,  M.  de  Cobentzel  and  I 
met,  in  order  to  conclude  it,  in  a  room  where,  according  to 
an  Austrian  custom,  a  dais  had  been  erected  and  the  throne 
of  the  Emperor  of  Austria  was  represented.  On  entering 
the  room,  I  asked  what  that  meant ;  and  afterward  I  said  to 
the  Austrian  Minister,  'Now,  before  we  begin,  have  that 
arm-chair  removed,  for  I  can  never  see  one  seat  higher  than 
the  others  without  instantly  wanting  to  place  myself  in  it.' 


168  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMITS  AT. 

You  see,  I  had  an  instinct  of  what  was  to  happen  to  me  some 
day. 

"  I  have  now  acquired  one  great  advantage  for  my  gov- 
ernment of  France  :  neither  she  nor  I  will  deceive  ourselves 
any  longer.  Talleyrand  wanted  me  to  make  myself  King — 
that  is  the  word  of  his  dictionary ;  but  I  will  have  no  grands 
seigneurs,  except  those  I  make  myself.  Besides  which,  the 
title  of  King  is  worn  out.  Certain  preconceived  ideas  are 
attached  to  it ;  it  would  make  me  a  kind  of  heir,  and  I  will 
be  the  heir  of  no  one.  The  title  that  I  bear  is  a  grander 
one  ;  it  is  still  somewhat  vague,  and  leaves  room  for  the  im- 
agination. Here  is  a  revolution  brought  to  an  end,  and,  I 
flatter  myself,  not  harshly.  Would  you  know  why?  Be- 
cause no  interests  have  been  displaced,  and  many  have  been 
revived.  That  vanity  of  yours  must  always  have  breathing 
room  ;  you  would  have  been  wearied  to  death  with  the  dull 
sternness  of  a  republican  government.  What  caused  the 
Bevolution?  Yanity.  What  will  end  it?  Vanity  again. 
Liberty  is  a  pretext ;  equality  is  your  hobby,  and  here  are 
the  people  quite  pleased  with  a  king  taken  from  the  ranks 
of  the  soldiery.  Men  like  the  Abbe  Sieyes,"  he  added, 
laughing,  "  may  inveigh  against  despotism,  but  my  authority 
will  always  be  popular.  To-day  I  have  the  people  and  the 
army  on  my  side ;  and  with  these  a  man  would  be  a  great 
fool  who  could  not  reign." 

With  these  concluding  words,  Bonaparte  rose.  Hitherto 
he  had  been  very  agreeable;  his  tone  of  voice,  his  counte- 
nance, his  gestures,  all  were  familiar  and  encouraging.  He 
had  been  smiling,  he  had  seen  our  answering  smiles,  and  had 
even  been  amused  by  the  remarks  we  had  made  on  his  dis- 
course ;  in  fact,  he  had  put  us  perfectly  at  our  ease.  But 
now,  in  a  moment,  his  manner  changed.  He  looked  at  us 
sternly,  in  a  way  that  always  seemed  to  increase  his  short 
stature,  and  gave  M.  de  Hemusat  some  insignificant  order  in 
the  curt  tone  of  a  despotic  master,  who  takes  care  that  every 
request  shall  be  a  command. 


THE  GRIEVANCES  OF  MADAME  MURAT.         169 

His  tone  of  voice,  so  different  from  that  to  which  I  had 
been  listening  for  the  last  hour,  made  me  start ;  and,  when 
we  had  withdrawn,  my  husband,  who  had  noticed  my  invol- 
untary movement,  told  me  that  he  had  felt  the  same  sensa- 
tion. "You  perceive,"  he  said,  ahe  was  afraid  that  this 
momentary  unbending  and  confidence  might  lessen  the  fear 
he  is  always  anxious  to  inspire.  He  therefore  thought  proper 
to  dismiss  us  with  a  reminder  that  he  is  the  master."  I 
never  forgot  this  just  observation,  and  more  than  once  I  have 
seen  that  it  was  founded  on  a  sound  appreciation  of  Bona- 
parte's character. 

I  have  allowed  myself  to  digress  in  relating  this  conver- 
sation and  the  reflections  which  preceded  it,  and  must  now 
return  to  the  day  on  which  Bonaparte  was  made  Emperor, 
and  continue  to  depict  the  curious  scenes  of  which  I  was  an 
eye-witness. 

I  have  already  enumerated  the  guests  whom  Bonaparte 
invited  to  dine  with  him  on  that  day.  Just  before  dinner 
was  announced,  Duroc,  the  Governor  of  the  Palace,  informed 
each  of  us,  severally,  that  the  title  of  Prince  was  to  be  given 
to  Joseph  and  Louis  Bonaparte,  and  that  of  Princess  to  their 
wives.  Mmes.  Bacciochi  and  Murat  were  enraged  at  the 
distinction  thus  made  between  themselves  and  their  sisters- 
in-law;  and  Mme.  Murat  could  hardly  conceal  her  anger. 
At  six  o'clock  the  new  Emperor  made  his  appearance,  and, 
with  perfect  ease  and  readiness,  saluted  each  one  present  by 
his  or  her  new  title.  The  scene  made  a  deep  impression  on 
me  ;  I  felt  it  like  a  presentiment.  The  early  part  of  the  day 
had  been  fine,  but  very  hot ;  but,  about  the  time  of  the  arri- 
val of  the  Senate  at  Saint  Cloud,  the  weather  suddenly 
changed,  the  sky  became  overcast,  thunder  was  heard,  and 
for  several  hours  a  storm  seemed  impending.  The  dark  and 
heavy  atmosphere  which  weighed  on  the  palace  of  Saint 
Cloud  struck  me  as  an  evil  omen,  and  I  could  hardly  conceal 
the  depression  I  felt.  The  Emperor  was  in  good  spirits,  and, 
I  think,  secretly  enjoyed  the  slight  confusion  which  the 


170  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

new  ceremonial  created  among  us  all.  The  Empress  was, 
as  usual,  gracious,  and  unaffected,  and  easy;  Joseph  and 
Louis  looked  pleased ;  Mme.  Joseph  appeared  resigned  to 
anything  that  might  be  required  of  her  ;  Mme.  Louis  was 
equally  submissive ;  and  Eugene  Beauharnais,  whom  I  can 
not  praise  too  highly  in  comparison  with  the  others,  was  sim- 
ple and  natural,  evidently  free  from  any  secret  ambition  or 
repining.  This  was  not  the  case  with  the  new-made  Mar- 
shal Murat ;  but  his  fear  of  his  brother-in-law  forced  him  to 
restrain  himself,  and  he  maintained  a  sullen  silence.  Mme. 
Murat  was  excessively  angry,  and  during  the  dinner  had  so 
little  control  over  herself  that,  on  hearing  the  Emperor  ad- 
dress Mme.  Louis  several  times  as  "Princess,"  she  could  not 
restrain  her  tears.  She  drank  several  glasses  of  water  in  or- 
der to  recover  herself,  and  to  appear  to  be  taking  something 
at  the  table,  but  her  tears  were  not  to  be  checked.  Every 
one  was  embarrassed,  and  her  brother  smiled  maliciously. 
For  my  own  part,  I  was  surprised,  and  even  shocked,  to  see 
that  young  and  pretty  face  disfigured  by  emotions  whose 
source  was  so  mean  a  passion. 

Mme.  Murat  was  then  between  twenty-two  and  twenty- 
three  years  of  age ;  her  dazzlingly  white  skin,  her  beautiful 
fair  hair,  the  flowery  wreath  which  decked  it,  the  rose-colored 
dress  she  wore,  all  contributed  to  give  her  a  youthful  and 
childlike  appearance.  The  feelings  which  she  now  displayed 
contrasted  harshly  with  those  charms.  ]STo  one  could  pity 
her  tears,  and  I  think  they  impressed  every  one  else  as  disa- 
greeably as  they  impressed  me. 

Mme.  Bacciochi,  who  was  older  and  had  more  command 
over  herself,  shed  no  tears ;  but  her  manner  was  abrupt  and 
sarcastic,  and  she  treated  us  all  with  marked  haughtiness. 

The  Emperor  became  annoyed  at  last  by  his  sisters'  be- 
havior, and  he  aggravated  their  ill  humor  by  indirect  taunts, 
which  wounded  them  very  deeply.  All  that  I  witnessed 
during  that  eventful  day  gave  me  new  notions  of  the  effect 
which  ambition  produces  on  minds  of  a  certain  order ;  it  was 


THE  GRIEVANCES  OF  MADAME  MURAT. 

a  spectacle  of  which  I  could  have  formed  no  previous  con- 
ception. 

On  the  following  day,  after  a  family  dinner,  a  violent 
scene  took  place,  at  which  I  was  not  present ;  but  we  could 
hear  something  of  it  through  the  wall  which  divided  the 
Empress's  boudoir  from  our  salon.  Mme.  Murat  burst  into 
complaints,  tears,  and  reproaches;  she  asked  why  she  and 
her  sisters  were  to  be  condemned  to  obscurity  and  contempt, 
while  strangers  were  to  be  loaded  with  honors  and  dignity  ? 
Bonaparte  answered  her  angrily,  asserting  several  times  that 
he  was  master,  and  would  distribute  honors  as  he  pleased. 
It  was  on  this  occasion  that  he  uttered  the  memorable  re- 
mark, "  Really,  inesdames,  to  hear  your  pretension,  one  would 
think  we  hold  the  crown  from  our  father,  the  late  King." 

The  Empress  afterward  retailed  to  me  the  whole  of  this 
angry  dispute.  With  all  her  kind-heartedness,  she  could  not 
help  enjoying  the  wrath  of  a  person  who  so  thoroughly  dis- 
liked her.  The  discussion  ended  by  Mme.  Murat's  falling 
on  the  floor  in  a  dead  faint,  overcome  by  her  excessive  anger 
and  by  the  acrimony  of  her  brother's  reproaches.  At  this, 
Bonaparte's  anger  vanished,  and  when  his  sister  recovered 
consciousness  he  gave  her  some  little  encouragement.  A 
few  days  later,  after  a  consultation  with  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
Cambaceres,  and  others,  it  was  arranged  that  titles  of  courtesy 
should  be  given  to  the  sisters  of  the  Emperor,  and  we  learned 
from  the  "Moniteur"  that  they  were  to  be  addressed  as 
"  Imperial  Highness." 

Another  vexation  was,  however,  in  store  for  Mme.  Murat 
and  her  husband.  The  private  regulations  of  the  palace  of 
Saint  Cloud  divided  the  Imperial  apartment  into  several  re- 
ception-rooms, which  could  only  be  entered  according  to  the 
newly  acquired  rank  of  each  person.  The  room  nearest  the 
Emperor's  cabinet  became  the  throne-room,  or  Princes'  room, 
and  Marshal  Murat,  although  the  husband  of  a  princess,  was 
excluded  from  it.  M.  de  Eemusat  had  the  unpleasant  task 
of  refusing  him  admittance  when  he  was  about  to  pass  in. 


172  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

Although  my  husband  was  not  responsible  for  the  orders  he 
had  received,  and  executed  them  with  scrupulous  politeness, 
Murat  was  deeply  offended  by  this  public  aifront;  and  he 
and  his  wife,  already  prejudiced  against  us  on  account  of  our 
attachment  to  the  Empress,  henceforth  honored  us  both,  if  I 
may  use  the  word,  with  a  secret  enmity,  of  which  we  have 
more  than  once  experienced  the  effects.  Mme.  Murat,  how- 
ever, who  had  discovered  her  influence  over  her  brother,  was 
far  from  considering  the  case  hopeless  on  this  occasion ;  and, 
in  fact,  she  eventually  succeeded  in  raising  her  husband  to 
the  position  she  so  eagerly  desired  for  him. 

The  new  code  of  precedence  caused  some  disturbance  in 
a  Court  which  had  hitherto  been  tolerably  quiet.  The 
struggle  of  contending  vanity  that  convulsed  the  Imperial 
family  was  parodied  in  Mme.  Bonaparte's  circle. 

In  addition  to  her  four  ladies-in-waiting,  Mme.  Bonaparte 
was  in  the  habit  of  receiving  the  wives  of  the  various  officers 
attached  to  the  service  of  the  First  Consul.  Besides  these, 
Mme.  Murat  was  frequently  invited — she  lived  permanently 
at  Saint  Cloud  on  account  of  her  husband's  position  there ; 
also  Mme.  de  la  Yalette,  the  Marquis  de  Beauharnais's  daugh- 
ter, whose  misfortunes  and  conjugal  tenderness  afterward 
made  her  famous  at  the  time  of  the  sentence  passed  on  her 
husband  and  his  escape,  in  1815.  He  was  of  very  humble 
origin,  but  clever,  and  of  an  amiable  disposition.  After  hav- 
ing served  some  time  in  the  army,  he  had  abandoned  a  mode 
of  life  unsuited  to  his  tastes.  The  First  Consul  had  employed 
him  on  some  diplomatic  missions,  and  had  just  appointed  him 
Counsellor  of  State.  He  evinced  extreme  devotion  to  all  the 
Beauharnais,  whose  kinsman  he  had  become.  His  wife  was 
amiable  and  unpretending  by  nature,  but  it  seemed  as  though 
vanity  were  to  become  the  ruling  passion  in  every  one  be- 
longing to  the  Court,  of  both  sexes  and  all  ages. 

An  order  from  the  Emperor  which  gave  the  ladies-in- 
waiting  precedence  over  others  became  a  signal  for  an  out- 
burst of  feminine  jealousy.  Mme.  Maret,  a  cold,  proud  per- 


THE  GRIEVANCES  OF  MADAME  MURAT.         173 

sonage,  was  annoyed  that  we  should  take  precedence  of  her, 
and  made  common  cause  with  Mme.  Murat,  who  fully  shared 
her  feelings.  Besides  this,  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  was  no 
friend  to  Maret,  and  mercilessly  ridiculed  his  absurdities, 
and  was  also  on  bad  terms  with  Murat,  had  become  an  object 
of  dislike  to  both,  and,  consequently,  a  bond  of  union  be- 
tween the  two.  The  Empress  did  not  like  anybody  who 
was  a  friend  of  Mme.  Murat,  and  treated  Mme.  Maret  with 
some  coldness ;  and,  although  I  never  shared  any  of  these 
feelings,  and,  for  my  own  part,  disliked  nobody,  I  was  in- 
cluded in  the  animadversions  of  that  party  upon  the  Beau- 
harnais. 

On  Sunday  morning  the  new  Empress  received  com- 
mands to  appear  at  mass,  attended  only  by  her  four  ladies- 
in-waiting.  Mme.  de  la  Yalette,  who  had  hitherto  accom- 
panied her  aunt  on  all  occasions,  finding  herself  suddenly 
deprived  of  this  privilege,  burst  into  tears,  and  so  we  had  to 
set  about  consoling  this  ambitious  young  lady.  I  observed 
these  things  with  much  amusement,  preserving  my  serenity 
in  these  somewhat  absurd  dissensions,  which  were,  neverthe- 
less, natural  enough.  So  much  was  it  a  matter  of  course  for 
the  inmates  of  the  palace  to  live  in  a  state  of  excitement,  and 
to  be  either  joyous  or  depressed  according  as  their  new-born 
projects  of  ambition  were  accomplished  or  disappointed,  that 
one  day,  when  I  was  in  great  spirits  and  laughing  heartily  at 
some  jest  or  other,  one  of  Bonaparte's  aides-de-camp  came  up 
to  me  and  asked  me  in  a  low  voice  whether  I  had  been  prom- 
ised some  new  dignity.  I  could  not  help  asking  him  in  re- 
turn whether  he  fancied  that  at  Saint  Cloud  one  must  always 
be  in  tears  unless  one  was  a  princess. 

Yet  I  had  my  own  little  ambition  too,  but  it  was  moderate 
and  easy  to  satisfy.  The  Emperor  had  made  known  to  me 
through  the  Empress,  and  M.  de  Caulaincourt  had  repeated 
it  to  my  husband,  that,  on  the  consolidation  of  his  own  for- 
tunes, he  would  not  forget  those  who  had  from  the  first  de- 
voted themselves  to  his  service.  Relying  on  this  assurance, 


174  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

we  felt  easy  with  regard  to  our  future,  and  took  no  steps  to 
render  it  secure.  We  were  wrong,  for  every  one  else  was 
actively  at  work.  M.  de  Remusat  had  always  kept  aloof 
from  any  kind  of  scheming,  a  defect  in  a  man  who  lived  at 
a  Court.  Certain  good  qualities  are  absolutely  a  bar  to  ad- 
vancement in  the  favor  of  sovereigns.  They  do  not  like  to 
find  generous  feelings  and  philosophical  opinions  which  are 
a  mark  of  independence  of  mind  in  their  surroundings  ;  and 
they  think  it  still  less  pardonable  that  those  who  serve  them 
should  have  any  means  of  escaping  from  their  power.  Bo- 
naparte, who  was  exacting  in  the  kind  of  service  he  required, 
quickly  perceived  that  M.  de  Remusat  would  serve  him  faith- 
fully, and  yet  would  not  bend  to  all  his  caprices.  This  dis- 
covery, together  with  some  additional  circumstances  which  I 
shall  relate  in  their  proper  places,  induced  him  to  discard  his 
obligations  to  him.  He  retained  my  husband  near  him  ;  he 
made  use  of  him  to  suit  his  own  convenience ;  but  he  did 
not  confer  the  same  honors  upon  him  which  he  bestowed  on 
many  others,  because  he  knew  that  no  favors  would  procure 
the  compliance  of  a  man  who  was  incapable  of  sacrificing 
self-respect  to  ambition.  The  arts  of  a  courtier  were,  be- 
sides, incompatible  with  M.  de  Remusat's  tastes.  He  liked 
solitude,  serious  occupations,  family  life ;  every  feeling  of 
his  heart  was  tender  and  pure  ;  the  use,  or  rather  the  waste 
of  his  time,  which  was  exclusively  occupied  in  a  continual 
and  minute  attention  to  the  details  of  Court  etiquette,  was  a 
source  of  constant  regret  to  him.  The  Revolution,  which 
removed  him  from  the  ranks  of  the  magistracy,  having  de- 
prived him  of  his  chosen  calling,  he  thought  it  his  duty  to 
his  children  to  accept  the  position  which  had  offered  itself ; 
but  the  constant  attention  to  important  trifles  to  which  he 
was  condemned  was  wearisome,  and  he  was  only  punctual 
when  he  ought  to  have  been  assiduous.  Afterward,  when 
the  veil  fell  from  his  eyes,  and  he  saw  Bonaparte  as  he  really 
was,  his  generous  spirit  was  roused  to  indignation,  and  close 
personal  attendance  on  him  became  very  painful  to  my  hus- 


THE  NEW  COURT.  175 

band.  Nothing  is  so  fatal  to  the  promotion  of  a  courtier  as 
his  being  actuated  by  conscientious  scruples  which  he  does 
not  conceal.  But,  at  the  period  of  which  I  am  speaking, 
these  feelings  of  ours  were  still  only  vague,  and  I  must  re- 
peat what  I  have  already  said — that  we  believed  that  the 
Emperor  was  in  some  measure  indebted  to  us,  and  we  relied 
on  him. 

The  time  soon  came,  however,  when  we  lost  some  of  our 
importance.  People  of  rank  equal  to  our  own,  and  soon 
afterward  those  who  were  our  superiors  both  in  rank  and 
fortune,  begged  to  be  allowed  to  form  part  of  the  Imperial 
Court ;  and  thenceforth  the  Cervices  of  those  who  were  the 
first  to  show  the  way  thither  decreased  in  value.  Bonaparte 
was  highly  delighted  at  his  gradual  conquest  of  the  French 
nobility,  and  even  Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  was  more  suscepti- 
ble of  affection  than  he,  had  her  head  turned  for  a  time  by 
finding  real  grandes  dames  among  her  ladies-in-waiting. 
Wiser  and  more  far-sighted  persons  than  ourselves  would 
have  been  more  than  ever  attentive  and  assiduous  in  order  to 
keep  their  footing,  which  was  disputed  in  every  direction  by 
a  crowd  full  of  their  own  importance ;  but,  far  from  acting 
thus,  we  gave  way  to  them.  We  saw  in  all  this  an  oppor- 
tunity of  partially  regaining  our  freedom,  and  imprudently 
availed  ourselves  of  it ;  and  when,  from  any  cause  whatever, 
one  loses  ground  at  Court,  it  is  rarely  to  be  recovered. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  was  urging  Bonaparte  to  surround 
himself  with  all  the  prestige  of  royalty,  advised  him  to  grati- 
fy the  vanity  and  pretension  of  those  whom  he  wished  to 
allure ;  and  in  France  the  nobility  can  be  satisfied  only  by 
being  placed  in  the  front.  Those  distinctions  to  which  they 
thought  themselves  entitled  had  to  be  dangled  before  their 
eyes ;  the  Montmorencys,  the  Montesquious,  etc.,  were  se- 
cured by  the  promise  that,  from  the  day  they  cast  in  their  lot 
with  Bonaparte,  they  should  resume  all  their  former  impor- 
tance. In  fact,  it  could  not  be  otherwise,  when  the  Emperor 
had  once  resolved  on  forming  a  regular  Court. 

lo 


176  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Some  persons  have  thought  that  Bonaparte  would  have 
done  more  wisely  had  he  retained  some  of  the  simplicity  and 
austerity  in  externals  which  disappeared  with  the  Consulate 
when  he  adopted  the  new  title  of  Emperor.  A  constitutional 
government  and  a  limited  Court,  displaying  no  luxury,  and 
significant  of  the  change  which  successive  revolutions  had 
wrought  in  people's  ideas,  might  perhaps  have  been  less 
pleasing  to  the  national  vanity,  but  it  would  have  com- 
manded more  real  respect.  At  the  time  of  which  I  am 
speaking,  the  dignities  to  be  conferred  on  those  persons  sur- 
rounding the  new  sovereign  were  much  discussed.  Duroc 
requested  M.  de  Eemusat  to  give  his  ideas  on  the  subject  in 
writing.  He  drew  up  a  wise  and  moderate  plan,  but  which 
was  too  simple  for  those  secret  projects  which  no  one  had 
then  divined.  "  There  is  not  sufficient  display  in  it,"  said 
Bonaparte,  as  he  read  it ;  "  all  that  would  not  throw  dust  in 
people's  eyes."  His  object  was  to  decoy,  in  order  to  deceive 
more  effectually. 

As  he  refused  to  give  a  free  constitution  to  the  French, 
he  had  to  conciliate  and  fascinate  them  by  every  possible 
means ;  and,  there  being  always  some  littleness  in  pride, 
supreme  power  was  not  enough  for  him — he  must  have  the 
appearance  of  it  too ;  he  must  have  etiquette,  chamberlains, 
and  so  forth,  which  he  believed  would  disguise  the  parvenu. 
He  liked  display ;  he  leaned  toward  a  feudal  system  quite 
alien  to  the  age  in  which  he  lived,  but  which  nevertheless  he 
intended  to  establish.  It  would,  however,  in  all  probability, 
have  only  lasted  for  the  duration  of  his  own  reign. 

It  would  be  impossible  to  record  all  his  notions  on  this 
subject.  The  following  were  some  of  them  :  "  The  French 
Empire,"  he  would  say,  "  will  become  the  mother  country  of 
the  other  sovereignties  of  Europe.  I  intend  that  each  of  the 
kings  shall  be  obliged  to  build  a  big  palace  for  his  own  use 
in  Paris ;  and  that,  on  the  coronation  of  the  Emperor  of  the 
French,  these  kings  shall  come  to  Paris,  and  grace  by  their 
presence  that  imposing  ceremony  to  which  they  will  render 


THE  NEW  COURT.  177 

homage."  What  did  this  project  mean,  except  that  he  hoped 
to  revive  the  feudal  system,  and  to  resuscitate  a  Charlemagne 
who,  for  his  own  advantage  only,  and  to  strengthen  his  own 
power,  should  avail  himself  of  the  despotic  notions  of  a  for- 
mer era  and  also  of  the  experience  of  modern  times  ? 

Bonaparte  frequently  declared  that  he  alone  was  the  whole 
Revolution,  and  he  at  length  persuaded  himself  that  in  his 
own  person  he  preserved  all  of  it  which  it  would  not  be  well 
to  destroy. 

A  fever  of  etiquette  seemed  to  have  seized  on  all  the  inhab- 
itants of  the  Imperial  palace  of  Saint  Cloud.  The  ponderous 
regulations  of  Louis  XIY.  were  taken  down  from  the  shelves 
in  the  library,  and  extracts  were  commenced  from  them, 
in  order  that  a  code  might  be  drawn  up  for  the  use  of  the 
new  Court.  Mme.  Bonaparte  sent  for  Mine.  Campan,  who 
had  been  First  Bedchamber  Woman  to  Marie  Antoinette. 
She  was  a  clever  woman,  and  kept  a  school,  where,  as  I  have 
already  mentioned,  nearly  all  the  young  girls  who  appeared 
at  Bonaparte's  Court  had  been  educated.  She  was  questioned 
in  detail  as  to  the  manners  and  customs  of  the  last  Queen  of 
France,  and  I  was  appointed  to  write  everything  that  she  re- 
lated from  her  dictation.  Bonaparte  added  the  very  volu- 
minous memoranda  which  resulted  from  this  to  those  which 
were  brought  to  him  from  all  sides.  M.  de  Talleyrand  was 
consulted  about  everything.  There  was  a  continual  coming 
and  going ;  people  were  living  in  a  kind  of  uncertainty  which 
had  its  pleasing  side,  because  every  one  hoped  to  rise  higher. 
I  must  candidly  confess  that  we  all  felt  ourselves  more  or  less 
elevated.  Vanity  is  ingenious  in  its  expectations,  and  ours 
were  unlimited. 

Sometimes  it  was  disenchanting,  for  a  moment,  to  ob- 
serve the  almost  ridiculous  effect  that  this  agitation  produced 
upon  certain  classes  of  society.  Those  who  had  nothing  to 
do  with  our  brand-new  dignities  said  with  Montaigne,  "  Verb- 
geons-nous  par  en  medire"  Jests  more  or  less  witty,  and  ca- 
lembours  more  or  less  ingenious,  were  lavished  on  these  new- 


178  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

made  princes,  and  somewhat  disturbed  our  brilliant  visions ; 
but  the  number  of  those  who  dare  to  censure  success  is 
small,  and  flattery  was  much  more  common  than  criticism,  at 
any  rate  in  the  circle  under  our  observation. 

Such  was,  then,  the  position  of  affairs  at  the  close  of  the 
era  which  terminates  here.  The  narrative  of  the  second 
epoch  will  show  what  progress  we  all  made  (when  I  say  "  we 
all,"  I  mean  France  and  Europe)  in  this  course  of  brilliant 
errors,  which  was  destined  to  lead  to  the  loss  of  our  liberties 
and  the  obscuration  of  our  true  greatness  for  a  long  period. 

In  the  April  of  that  year  Bonaparte  made  his  brother 
Louis  a  member  of  the  Council  of  State,  and  Joseph  colonel 
of  the  4th  Regiment  of  Infantry.  "  You  must  both  belong 
to  the  civil  and  military  service  by  turns,"  he  said.  "  You 
must  not  be  strangers  to  anything  that  concerns  the  interests 
of  the  country." 


CHAPTEK  Yin. 

(1804.) 

The  Trial  of  General  Moreau— Condemnation  of  MM.  de  Polignac,  De  Riviere,  etc. 
—Pardon  of  M.  de  Polignac— A  Letter  from  Louis  XVm. 

THE  creation  of  the  Empire  had  turned  public  attention 
away  from  the  proceedings  against  Moreau,  which  were, 
however,  going  on.  The  accused  had  been  brought  before 
the  tribunal  several  times ;  but,  the  more  the  case  was  inves- 
tigated, the  less  hope  there  was  of  the  condemnation  of 
Moreau,  which  became  day  by  day  an  object  of  greater  im- 
portance. I  am  perfectly  convinced  that  the  Emperor  would 
not  have  allowed  Moreau's  life  to  be  taken.  That  the  Gen- 
eral should  be  condemned  and  pardoned  would  have  been 
sufficient  for  his  purpose,  which  was  to  refute,  by  the  sen- 
tence of  the  court,  those  who  accused  him  of  having  acted 
with  undue  haste  and  personal  animosity. 

All  who  have  brought  cool  observation  to  bear  upon  this 
important  event  are  agreed  in  thinking  that  Moreau  ex- 
hibited weakness  and  want  of  judgment.  When  he  was 
brought  up  for  examination,  he  showed  none  of  the  dignity 
that  was  expected  from  him.  He  did  not,  like  Georges  Ca- 
doudal,  assume  the  attitude  of  a  determined  man,  who  open- 
ly avowed  the  lofty  designs  that  had  actuated  him ;  neither 
did  he  assume  that  of  an  innocent  man,  full  of  righteous  in- 
dignation at  an  unjust  charge.  He  prevaricated  in  some  of 
his  answers,  and  the  interest  which  he  inspired  was  dimin- 
ished by  that  fact ;  but  even  then  Bonaparte  gained  nothing 


180  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

by  this  lessening  enthusiasm,  and  not  only  party  spirit,  but 
reason  itself,  censured  no  less  strongly  than  before  a  proceed- 
ing which  was  still  attributed  to  personal  enmity. 

At  length,  on  the  30th  of  May,  the  formal  indictment 
(acte  d?  accusation)  appeared  in  the  "  Moniteur."  It  was  ac- 
companied by  certain  letters  written  by  Moreau  in  1795,  be- 
fore the  18th  Fructidor,  which  proved  that  the  General,  be- 
ing then  convinced  that  Pichegru  was  corresponding  with 
the  princes,  had  denounced  him  to  the  Directory.  A  gen- 
eral and  natural  question  then  arose :  Why  had  Moreau  acted 
so  differently  in  the  case  of  this  second  conspiracy,  justifying 
himself  by  the  statement  that  he  had  not  thought  it  proper 
to  reveal  the  secret  of  a  plot,  in  which  he  had  refused  to  en- 
gage, to  the  First  Consul  ? 

On  the  6th  of  June  the  examinations  of  all  the  accused 
persons  were  published.  Among  these  there  were  some  who 
declared  positively  that  the  princes,  in  England,  were  quite 
confident  that  they  might  count  upon  Moreau ;  that  it  was 
with  this  hope  Pichegru  had  gone  to  France,  and  that  the 
two  generals  had  subsequently  on  several  occasions  had  in- 
terviews with  Georges  Cadoudal.  They  even  asserted  that 
Pichegru  had  evinced  great  dissatisfaction  after  these  inter- 
views, had  complained  that  Moreau  gave  him  only  half- 
hearted support,  and  seemed  anxious  to  profit  on  his  own  ac- 
count by  the  blow  which  was  to  strike  Bonaparte.  A  person 
named  Bolland  declared  that  Moreau  had  said,  "  The  first 
thing  to  be  done  is  to  get  rid  of  the  First  Consul." 

Moreau,  on  being  questioned  in  his  turn,  answered  that 
Pichegru,  when  he  was  in  England,  had  conveyed  an  in- 
quiry to  him  as  to  whether  he  would  assist  him  in  case  he 
should  wish  to  return  to  France,  and  that  he  had  prom- 
ised to  help  him  to  carry  out  that  project.  It  naturally  occa- 
sioned no  little  astonishment  tfrat  Pichegru,  who  had  been 
denounced  some  years  before  by  Moreau  himself,  should 
have  applied  to  him  to  obtain  his  "  erasure  "  ;  and  Pichegru 
had,  at  the  time  of  his  examination,  denied  that  he  had  done 


TEE  TRIAL  OF  GENERAL  MOREAU.  181 

so.  At  the  same  time,  however,  he  also  denied  that  he  had 
seen  Moreau,  although  Moreau  acknowledged  that  they  had 
met,  and  he  persisted  in  declaring  that  in  coming  to  France 
he  had  been  actuated  solely  by  his  aversion  to  a  foreign 
country,  and  his  desire  to  return  to  his  own.  Shortly  after- 
ward Pichegru  was  found  strangled  in  his  prison,  and  the 
circumstances  of  his  death  have  never  been  explained,  nor 
have  any  comprehensible  motives  which  could  have  rendered 
it  necessary  to  himself  been  assigned.* 

Moreau  admitted  that  he  had  received  Pichegru  (who 
took  him,  he  said,  by  surprise)  at  his  house,  but  he  de- 
clared at  the  same  time  that  he  had  positively  refused 
to  enter  into  a  scheme  for  the  replacement  of  the  house 
of  Bourbon  on  the  throne,  because  such  a  resolution  would 
disturb  the  settlement  of  the  national  property;  and  he 
added  that,  so  far  as  his  own  personal  pretensions  were  con- 
cerned, the  notion  was  absurd,  as  it  would  have  been  neces- 
sary to  their  success  that  not  only  the  First  Consul,  but 
the  two  other  Consuls,  the  Governors  of  Paris,  and  the 
guard,  should  be  got  rid  of.  He  declared  that  he  had  seen 
Pichegru  but  once,  although  others  of  the  accused  asserted 

*  Here,  as  in  the  preceding  chapter,  the  author  is  not  sufficiently  precise  in 
relating  the  cause  of  the  death  of  General  Pichegru.  The  statement  that  he 
had  committed  suicide  was  received  at  the  time  with  widespread  incredulity,  and 
the  first  result  of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  was  that  the  Emperor  was 
made  to  expiate  that  crime,  by  having  others  imputed  to  him  which  his  most  de- 
termined enemies  would  not  have  attributed  to  him  previously.  It  is  only  com- 
mon justice  to  Napoleon  to  record  that  his  accusers  have  never  been  able  to 
prove  that  it  was  for  his  interest  in  any  way  that  the  accused  should  not  appear 
before  his  judges.  M.  Thiers  has  demonstrated  that  Pichegru's  presence  at  the 
trial  was  necessary.  The  depositions  of  the  accused  of  all  parties  were  all 
equally  condemnatory  of  him.  His  legal  criminality  was  certain,  and  he  could 
not  fail  to  be  condemned,  and  to  deserve  his  condemnation.  The  man  who  was 
really  to  be  feared  was  Moreau.  It  has,  indeed,  been  said  that  a  report  made 
by  experts  established  the  impossibility  of  suicide  under  the  circumstances ;  i.  e., 
the  use  of  a  silk  handkerchief,  from  which  the  body  was  found  hanging.  We 
must,  however,  bear  in  mind  that  legal  medicine  seventy  years  ago  was  a  merely 
conjectural  science,  and  that  recent  experience  has  proved  suicide  by  strangula- 
tion to  be  easily  and  rapidly  effected. 


182  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

that  several  interviews  had  taken  place  between  them  ;  and 
he  maintained  this  line  of  defense  unshaken.  He  was,  how- 
ever, obliged  to  admit  that  he  had  discovered  at  an  advanced 
stage  of  the  affair  that  Frasnieres,  his  private  secretary,  was 
deeply  involved  with  the  conspirators.  Frasnieres  had  fled  on 
the  first  alarm. 

Georges  Cadoudal  answered  that  his  plan  was  to  attack 
the  First  Consul,  and  remove  him  by  force ;  that  he  had 
never  entertained  a  doubt  of  finding  in  Paris  itself  a  num- 
ber of  enemies  of  the  actual  regime  who  would  aid  him  in 
his  enterprise ;  and  that  he  would  have  endeavored  by  every 
means  in  his  power  to  replace  Louis  X VIII.  upon  his  throne. 
He  steadily  denied,  however,  that  he  knew  either  Pichegru 
or  Moreau ;  and  he  terminated  his  replies  with  these  words : 
"  You  have  victims  enough ;  I  do  not  wish  to  augment  their 
number." 

Bonaparte  seemed  to  be  impressed  by  this  strength  of 
character,  and  said  to  us  on  that  occasion,  "  If  it  were  pos- 
sible that  I  could  save  any  of  these  assassins,  I  should  pardon 
Georges." 

The  Due  de  Polignac  replied  that  he  had  come  to  France 
secretly,  with  the  sole  purpose  of  ascertaining  positively  the 
state  of  public  opinion,  and  what  were  the  chances  it  af- 
forded ;  but  that,  when  he  perceived  that  an  assassination 
was  in  question,  he  had  thought  only  of  getting  away  again, 
and  would  have  left  France  if  he  had  not  been  arrested. 

M.  de  Kiviere  made  a  similar  answer,  and  M.  Jules  de 
Polignac  declared  that  he  had  merely  followed  his  brother. 

On  the  10th  of  June  twenty  of  the  accused  persons  were 
convicted  and  sentenced  to  death.  At  the  head  of  the  list 
were  Georges  Cadoudal  and  the  Marquis  de  Kiviere.  The 
judgment  went  on  to  state  that  Jules  de  Polignac,  Louis 
Meridan,  Moreau,  and  Bolland  were  guilty  of  having  taken 
part  in  the  said  conspiracy,  but  that  it  appeared  from  the 
"  instruction  "  and  the  investigation  that  there  were  circum- 
stances which  rendered  them  excusable,  and  that  the  court 


CONDEMNATION  OF  M.  DE  POLIGNAC.  183 

therefore  commuted  the  punishment  which  they  had  incurred 
to  that  of  fine  and  imprisonment. 

I  was  at  Saint  Cloud  when  the  news  of  this  finding  of  the 
court  arrived.  Every  one  was  dumfounded.  The  Chief 
Judge  had  pledged  himself  to  the  First  Consul  that  Moreau 
should  be  condemned  to  death,  and  Bonaparte's  discomfiture 
was  so  great  that  he  was  incapable  of  concealing  it.  It  was 
publicly  known  that,  at  his  first  public  audience  on  the  Sun- 
day following,  he  displayed  ungoverned  anger  toward  Le- 
courbe  (brother  to  the  general  of  that  name),  the  judge  who 
had  spoken  strongly  in  favor  of  Moreau's  innocence  at  the 
trial.  He  ordered  Lecourbe  out  of  his  presence,  calling  him 
a  "  prevaricating  judge  " — an  epithet  whose  signification  no- 
body could  guess ;  and  shortly  afterward  he  deprived  him  of 
his  judgeship. 

I  returned  to  Paris,  much  troubled  by  the  state  of  things 
at  Saint  Cloud,  and  I  found  that  among  a  certain  party  in 
the  city  the  result  of  the  trial  was  regarded  with  exultation 
which  was  nothing  short  of  an  insult  to  the  Emperor.  The 
nobility  were  much  grieved  by  the  condemnation  of  the  Due 
de  Polignac. 

I  was  with  my  mother  and  my  husband,  and  we  were  de- 
ploring the  melancholy  results  of  these  proceedings,  and  the 
numerous  executions  which  were  about  to  take  place,  when 
I  was  informed  that  the  Duchesse  de  Polignac,  and  her 
aunt,  Mme.  Daudlau,  the  daughter  of  Helvetius,  whom  I 
had  often  met  in  society,  had  come  to  visit  me.  They  were 
ushered  into  the  room,  both  in  tears.  The  Duchess,  who 
was  in  an  interesting  situation,  enlisted  my  sympathies  at 
once ;  she  came  to  entreat  me  to  procure  an  audience  of  the 
Emperor  for  her,  that  she  might  implore  him  to  pardon  her 
husband.  She  had  no  means  of  gaining  admission  to  the 
palace  of  Saint  Cloud,  and  she  hoped  I  would  assist  her. 
M.  de'Eemusat  and  my  mother  were,  like  myself,  fully  alive 
to  the  difficulty  of  the  enterprise,  but  we  all  three  felt  that  I 
ought  not  to  allow  that  difficulty  to  hinder  me  from  making 


184:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

the  attempt ;  and  as  we  still  had  some  days  before  us,  be- 
cause of  the  appeal  against  their  sentence  which  the  con- 
demned men  had  made,  I  arranged  with  the  two  ladies  that 
they  should  go  to  Saint  Cloud  on  the  following  day,  while  I 
was  to  precede  them  by  a  few  hours,  and  induce  Mme.  Bona- 
parte to  receive  them. 

Accordingly,  the  next  day  I  returned  to  Saint  Cloud,  and 
I  had  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  promise  from  my  good 
Empress  that  she  would  receive  a  person  in  so  unhappy  a 
position.  But  she  did  not  conceal  from  me  that  she  felt 
considerable  dread  of  approaching  the  Emperor  at  a  moment 
when  he  was  so  much  displeased.  "  If,"  said  she,  "  Moreau 
had  been  condemned,  I  should  feel  more  hopeful  of  our 
success ;  but  he  is  in  such  a  rage  that  I  am  afraid  he  will 
turn  us  away,  and  be  angry  with  you  for  what  you  are  going 
to  make  me  do." 

I  was  too  much  moved  by  the  tears  and  the  condition  of 
Mme.  de  Polignac  to  be  influenced  by  such  a  consideration, 
and  I  did  my  best  to  make  the  Empress  realize  the  impres- 
sion which  these  sentences  had  produced  in  Paris.  I  re- 
minded her  of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien,  of  Bona- 
parte's 'elevation  to  the  imperial  throne  in  the  midst  of 
sanguinary  punishments,  and  pointed  out  to  her  that  the 
general  alarm  would  be  allayed  by  one  act  of  clemency 
which  might,  at  least,  be  quoted  side  by  side  with  so  many 
acts  of  severity. 

While  I  was  speaking  to  the  Empress  with  all  the  warmth 
and  earnestness  of  which  I  was  capable,  and  with  streaming 
tears,  the  Emperor  suddenly  entered  the  room  from  the 
terrace  outside ;  this  he  frequently  did  of  a  morning,  when 
he  would  leave  his  work,  and  come  through  the  glass  door 
into  his  wife's  room  for  a  little  talk  with  her.  He  instantly 
perceived  our  agitation,  and,  although  at  another  moment  I 
should  have  been  taken  aback  at  his  unlooked-for  presence, 
the  profound  emotion  which  I  felt  overcame  all  other  con- 
siderations, and  I  replied  to  his  questions  with  a  frank 


CONDEMNATION  OF  M.  DE  POLIGNAC.          185 

avowal  of  what  I  had  ventured  to  do.  The  Empress,  who 
was  closely  observing  his  countenance,  seeing  the  sever.e  look 
that  overcast  it,  did  not  hesitate  to  come  to  my  aid  by  tell- 
ing him  that  she  had  already  consented  to  receive  Mme.  de 
Polignac. 

The  Emperor  began  by  refusing  to  listen  to  us,  and  com- 
plaining that  we  were  putting  him  in  for  all  the  difficulty  of 
a  position  which  would  give  him  the  appearance  of  cruelty. 
"  I  will  not  see  this  woman,"  he  said  to  me.  "  I  can  not 
grant  a  pardon.  You  do  not  see  that  this  Royalist  party  is 
full  of  young  fools,  who  will  begin  again  with  this  kind  of 
thing,  and  keep  on  at  it,  if  they  are  not  kept  within  bounds 
by  a  severe  lesson.  The  Bourbons  are  credulous ;  they  be- 
lieve the  assurances  which  they  get  from  schemers  who  de- 
ceive them  respecting  the  real  state  of  the  public  mind  of 
France,  'and  they  will  send  a  lot  of  victims  over  here." 

This  answer  did  not  stop  me ;  I  was  extremely  excited, 
partly  by  the  event  itself,  and  perhaps  also  by  the  slight  risk 
I  was  running  of  displeasing  my  formidable  master.  I  would 
not  be  so  cowardly  in  my  own  eyes  as  to  retreat  before  any 
personal  consideration,  and  that  feeling  made  me  bold  and 
tenacious.  I  insisted  so  strongly,  and  entreated  with  such 
earnestness,  that  the  Emperor,  who  was  walking  hurriedly 
about  the  room  while  I  was  speaking,  suddenly  paused  oppo- 
site to  me,  and,  fixing  a  piercing  gaze  on  me,  said :  "  What 
personal  interest  do  you  take  in  these  people  ?  You  are  not 
excusable  except  they  are  your  relatives." 

"  Sire,"  I  answered,  with  all  the  firmness  I  could  sum- 
mon up,  "  I  do  not  know  them,  and  until  yesterday  I  had 
never  seen  Mme.  de  Polignac."  "  What !  And  you  thus 
plead  the  cause  of  people  who  came  here  to  assassinate  me  ? " 
"  No,  sire ;  I  plead  the  cause  of  an  unfortunate  woman  who 
is  in  despair,  and — I  must  say  it — I  plead  your  own  cause 
too."  And  then,  quite  carried  away  by  my  feelings,  I  re- 
peated all  that  I  had  said  to  the  Empress.  She  was  as  much 
affected  as  myself,  and  warmly  seconded  all  I  said.  But  we 


186  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

could  obtain  nothing  from  the  Emperor  at  that  moment ;  he 
went  angrily  away,  telling  us  not  to  "  worry  "  him  any  more. 

A  few  minutes  afterward  I  was  informed  that  Mme.  de 
Polignac  had  arrived.  The  Empress  received  her  in  a  pri- 
vate room,  and  promised  that  she  would  do  everything  in 
her  power  to  obtain  a  pardon  for  the  Due  de  Polignac.  Dur- 
ing the  course  of  that  morning,  certainly  one  of  the  most 
agitating  I  have  ever  lived  through,  the  Empress  went  twice 
into  her  husband's  cabinet,  and  twice  had  to  leave  it,  repulsed. 
Each  time  she  returned  to  me,  quite  disheartened,  and  I  was 
losing  hope  and  beginning  to  tremble  at  the  prospect  of  hav- 
ing to  take  a  refusal  to  Mme.  de  Polignac  as  the  final  answer. 
At  length  we  learned  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  with  the 
Emperor,  and  I  besought  the  Empress  to  make  one  last  at- 
tempt, thinking  that,  if  M.  de  Talleyrand  were  a  witness  to 
it,  he  would  endeavor  to  persuade  Bonaparte.  And,  in  fact, 
he  did  second  the  Empress .  at  once  and  strongly ;  and  at 
length  Bonaparte,  vanquished  by  their  supplications,  consent- 
ed to  allow  Mme.  de  Polignac  to  appear  before  him.  This 
was  promising  everything ;  it  would  have  been  impossible  to 
utter  a  cruel  "  No  ! "  in  such  a  presence.  Mme.  de  Polignac 
was  ushered  into  the  cabinet,  and  fell  fainting  at  the  Emper- 
or's feet.  The  Empress  was  in  tears ;  the  pardon  of  the  Due 
de  Polignac  was  granted,  and  an  article  written  by  M.  de 
Talleyrand  gave  a  charming  account  of  the  scene,  in  what 
was  then  called  the  "  Journal  de  1'Empire,"  on  the  following 
day. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  on  leaving  the  Emperor's  cabinet, 
found  me  in  the  Empress's  boudoir,  and  related  to  me  all 
that  had  occurred.  He  made  me  cry  afresh,  and  he  was  far 
from  being  unmoved  himself ;  but,  nevertheless,  he  also  made 
me  laugh  by  his  recital  of  an  absurd  little  circumstance  which 
had  not  escaped  his  keen  perception  of  the  ridiculous.  Poor 
Mme.  Daudlau,  who  had  accompanied  her  niece,  and  wanted 
to  produce  her  own  particular  little  effect,  kept  on  repeating, 
in  the  midst  of  her  efforts  to  revive  Mme.  de  Polignac — who 


PARDON  OF  M.  DE  POLIGNAC.  187 

was  restored  to  consciousness  with  great  difficulty — "  Sire,  I 
am  the  daughter  of  Helvetius  ! " 

The  Due  de  Polignac's  sentence  was  commuted  to  four 
years'  imprisonment,  to  be  followed  by  banishment.  He  was 
sent  to  join  his  brother,  and,  after  having  been  confined  in  a 
fortress,  they  were  removed  to  a  civil  prison,  whence  they 
escaped  during  the  campaign  of  1814.  The  Due  de  Kovigo 
(Fouche*),  who  was  then  Minister  of  Police,  was  suspected  of 
having  connived  at  their  escape,  in  order  to  curry  favor  with 
the  party  whose  approaching  triumph  he  foresaw. 

I  have  no  desire  to  make  more  of  myself  on  this  occasion 
than  I  strictly  deserve,  but  I  think  it  will  be  admitted  that 
circumstances  so  fell  out  as  to  permit  me  to  render  a  very 
substantial  service  to  the  Polignac  family — one  of  which  it 
would  seem  natural  that  they  should  have  preserved  some 
recollection.  Since  the  return  of  the  King  to  France,  I 
have,  however,  been  taught  by  experience  how  effectually 
party  spirit,  especially  among  courtiers,  effaces  all  senti- 
ments of  which  it  disapproves,  no  matter  how  just  they 
may  be. 

After  the  incident  which  I  have  just  related,  I  received 
a  few  visits  from  Mme.  de  Polignac,  who  doubtless  held  her- 
self bound  to  so  much  recognition  of  me ;  but,  by  degrees, 
as  we  lived  in  different  circles,  we  lost  sight  of  each  other  for 
some  years,  until  the  Restoration.  At  that  epoch  the  Due 
de  Polignac,  having  been  sent  by  the  King  to  Malmaison  to 
thank  the  Empress  Josephine  in  his  Majesty's  name  for  her 
zealous  efforts  to  save  the  life  of  the  Due  d'Enghien,  took 
advantage  of  the  opportunity  to  express  his  own  gratitude  to 
her  at  the  same  time.  The  Empress  informed  me  of  this 
visit,  and  said  that  no  doubt  the  Duke  would  also  call  on 
me ;  and  I  confess  that  I  expected  some  polite  recognition 
from  him.  I  did  not  receive  any  ;  and,  as  it  was  not  accord- 
ing to  my  notions  to  endeavor  to  arouse  by  any  words  of 
mine  gratitude  which  could  only  be  valuable  by  being  volun- 
tary, I  remained  quietly  at  home,  and  made  no  reference  to 


188  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

an  event  which  the  persons  concerned  in  it  seemed  to  wish  to 
forget,  or  at  least  to  ignore. 

One  evening  chance  brought  me  in  contact  with  Mme. 
de  Polignac.  It  was  at  a  reception  at  the  house  of  the  Due 
d'Orleans,  and  in  the  midst  of  a  great  crowd.  The  Palais 
Royal  was  splendidly  decorated,  all  the  French  nobility  were 
assembled  there,  and  the  grands  seigneurs  and  high-born  gen- 
tlemen to  whom  the  Restoration  at  first  seemed  to  mean  the 
restoration  of  their  former  rights,  accosted  each  other  with 
the  easy,  secure,  and  satisfied  manner  so  readily  resumed  with 
success.  Amid  this  brilliant  crowd  I  perceived  the  Duchesse 
de  Polignac.  After  long  years  I  found  her  again,  restored 
to  her  rank,  receiving  all  those  congratulations  which  were 
due  to  her,  surrounded  by  an  adulatory  crowd.  I  recalled 
the  day  on  which  I  first  saw  her,  the  state  she  was  then  in, 
her  tears,  her  terror,  the  way  in  which  she  came  toward  me 
when  she  entered  iny  room,  and  almost  fell  at  my  feet.  I 
was  deeply  moved  by  this  contrast,  and,  being  only  a  few 
paces  from  her,  the  interest  with  which  she  inspired  me  led 
me  to  approach  her.  I  addressed  her  in  a  tone  of  voice 
which,  no  doubt,  fully  conveyed  the  really  tender  feeling  of 
the  moment,  and  congratulated  her  on  the  very  different  cir- 
cumstances under  which  we  met  again.  All  I  would  have 
asked  of  her  was  a  word  of  remembrance,  which  would  have 
responded  to  the  emotion  I  felt  on  her  account.  This  feeling 
was  speedily  chilled  by  the  indifference  and  constraint  with 
which  she  listened  to  what  I  said.  She  either  did  not  recog- 
nize me,  or  she  affected  not  to  do  so ;  I  had  to  give  my  name. 
Her  embarrassment  increased.  On  perceiving  this  I  imme- 
diately turned  away,  and  with  very  painful  feelings ;  for  those 
which  her  presence  had  caused,  and  which  I  had  thought  at 
first  she  would  share,  were  rudely  dispelled. 

The  Empress's  goodness  in  obtaining  a  remission  of  the 
capital  sentence  for  M.  de  Polignac  made  a  great  sensation 
in  Paris,  and  gave  rise  to  renewed  praise  of  her  kindness  of 
heart,  which  had  obtained  almost  universal  recognition.  The 


PARDON  OF  THE  MARQUIS  DE  RIVIERE.        189 

wives,  or  mothers,  or  sisters  of  the  other  political  offenders 
immediately  besieged  the  palace  of  Saint  Cloud,  and  en- 
deavored to  obtain  audience  of  the  Empress,  hoping  to  enlist 
her  sympathy.  Applications  were  also  made  to  her  daughter, 
and  they  both  obtained  further  pardons  or  commutations  of 
sentence.  The  Emperor  felt  that  a  dark  shadow  would  be 
cast  on  his  accession  to  the  throne  by  so  many  executions, 
and  showed  himself  accessible  to  the  petitions  addressed  to 
him. 

His  sisters,  who  were  by  no  means  included  in  the  popu- 
larity of  the  Empress,  and  were  anxious  to  obtain  if  possible 
some  public  favor  for  themselves,  gave  the  wives  of  some  of 
the  condemned  men  to  understand  that  they  might  apply  to 
them  also.  They  then  took  the  petitioners  in  their  own  car- 
riages to  Saint  Cloud,  in  a  sort  of  semi-state,  to  entreat  par- 
don for  their  husbands.  These  proceedings,  as  to  which  the 
Emperor,  I  believe,  had  been  consulted  beforehand,  seemed 
less  spontaneous  than  those  of  the  Empress — indeed,  bore 
signs  of  prearrangement ;  but  at  any  rate  they  served  to  save 
the  lives  of  several  persons.  Murat,  who  had  excited  uni- 
versal indignation  by  his  violent  behavior  and  by  his  hostility 
to  Moreau,  also  tried  to  regain  popularity  by  similar  devices, 
and  did  in  fact  obtain  a  pardon  for  the  Marquis  de  Riviere. 
On  the  same  occasion  he  brought  a  letter  from  Georges  Ca- 
doudal  to  Bonaparte,  which  I  heard  read.  It  was  a  manly 
and  outspoken  letter,  such  as  might  be  penned  by  a  man 
who,  being  convinced  that  the  deeds  he  has  done,  and  which 
have  proved  his  destruction,  were  dictated  by  a  generous 
sense  of  duty  and  an  unchangeable  resolution,  is  resigned  to 
his  fate.  Bonaparte  was  deeply  impressed  by  this  letter,  and 
again  expressed  his  regret  that  he  could  not  extend  clemency 
to  Georges  Cadoudal. 

This  man,  the  real  head  of  the  conspiracy,  died  with  un- 
shaken courage.  Twenty  had  been  condemned  to  death. 
The  capital  sentence  was,  in  the  cases  of  seven,  commuted  to 
a  more  or  less  prolonged  imprisonment.  Their  names  are  as 


190  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B^MUSAT. 

follows :  the  Due  de  Polignac,  the  Marquis  de  Riviere,  Rus- 
sillon,  Kochelle,  D'Hozier,  Lajollais,  Guillard.  The  others 
were  executed.  General  Moreau  was  taken  to  Bordeaux, 
and  put  on  board  a  ship  for  the  United  States.  His  family 
sold  their  property  by  Imperial  command  ;  the  Emperor 
bought  a  portion  of  it,  and  bestowed  the  estate  of  Grosbois 
on  Marshal  Berthier. 

A  few  days  later,  the  "Moniteur"  published  a  protest 
from  Louis  XVIII.  against  the  accession  of  Napoleon.  It 
appeared  on  July  1,  1804,  but  produced  little  effect.  The 
Cadoudal  conspiracy  had  weakened  the  faint  sentiment  -of 
barely  surviving  allegiance  to  the  old  dynasty.  The  plot 
had,  in  fact,  been  so  badly  conceived ;  it  seemed  to  be  based 
on  such  total  ignorance  of  the  internal  state  of  France,  and 
of  the  opinions  of  the  various  parties  in  the  country ;  the 
names  and  the  characters  of  the  conspirators  inspired  so  lit- 
tle confidence ;  and,  above  all,  the  further  disturbances  whieh 
must  have  resulted  from  any  great  change,  were  so  univer- 
sally dreaded  that,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  number  of 
gentlemen  whose  interests  would  be  served  by  the  renewal  of 
an  abolished  state  of  things,  there  was  in  France  no  regret 
for  a  result  which  served  to  strengthen  the  newly  inaugu- 
rated system.  Whether  from  conviction,  or  from  a  longing 
for  repose,  or  from  yielding  'to  the  sway  of  the  great  fortunes 
of  the  new  Head  of  the  State,  many  gave  in  their  adhesion 
to  his  sovereignty,  and  from  this  time  forth  France  assumed 
a  peaceful  and  orderly  attitude.  The  opposing  factions  be- 
came disheartened,  and,  as  commonly  happens  when  this  is 
the  case,  each  individual  belonging  to  them  made  secret  at- 
temps  to  link  his  lot  to  the  chances  offered  by  a  totally  new 
system.  Gentle  and  simple,  Royalists  and  Liberals,  all  be- 
gan to  scheme  for  advancement.  New  ambitions  and  vani- 
ties were  aroused,  and  favors  solicited  in  every  direction. 
Bonaparte  beheld  those  on  whom  he  could  least  have  counted 
suing  for  the  honor  of  serving  him. 

Meanwhile  he  was  not  in  haste  to  choose  from  among 


A  RESPITE  FROM  COURT  LIFE. 

them ;  he  delayed  a  long  time,  in  order  to  feed  their  hopes 
and  to  increase  the  number  of  aspirants.  During  this  respite, 
I  left  the  Court  for  a  little  breathing-time  in  the  country. 
I  staid  for  a  month  in  the  valley  of  Montmorency,  with 
Mme.  d'Houdetot,  of  whom  I  have  already  spoken.  The 
quiet  life  I  led  in  her  house  was  refreshing  after  the  anxie- 
ties and  annoyances  which  I  had  recently  had  to  endure 
almost  uninterruptedly.  I  needed  this  interval  of  rest ;  iny 
health,  which  since  that  time  has  always  been  more  or  less 
delicate,  was  beginning  to  fail,  and  my  spirits  were  depressed 
by  the  new  aspect  of  events,  and  by  discoveries  I  was  slowly 
making  about  things  in  general,  and  about  certain  great  per- 
sonages in  particular.  The  gilded  veil  which  Bonaparte  used 
to  say  hung  before  the  eyes  of  youth  was  beginning  to  lose 
its  brightness,  and  I  became  aware  of  the  fact  with  astonish- 
ment, which  always  causes  more  or  less  suffering,  until  time 
and  experience  have  made  us  wiser  and  taught  us  to  take 
things  more  easily. 

IT 


CHAPTER  IX. 

(1804.) 

Plans  for  the  Invasion — An  Article  in  the  "Moniteur" — The  Great  Officers  of 
State — The  Ladies-in- Waiting — The  Anniversary  of  July  14th — Beauty  of  the 
Empress— Projects  of  Divorce— Preparations  for  the  Coronation. 

BY  degrees  the  flotillas  built  in  our  other  harbors  came 
round  to  join  those  of  Boulogne.  They  sometimes  met  with 
obstacles  on  the  way,  for  English  vessels  were  always  cruis- 
ing about  the  coast  to  prevent  their  junction.  The  camps  at 
Boulogne,  at  Montreuil,  and  at  Compiegne  presented  an  im- 
posing appearance,  and  the  army  became  daily  more  numer- 
ous and  more  formidable. 

There  is  no  doubt  that  these  preparations  for  war,  and 
the  comments  which  were  made  upon  them  in  Paris,  caused 
some  anxiety  in  Europe;  for  an  article  appeared  in  the 
newspapers  which  created  no  great  impression  at  the  time, 
but  which  I  considered  to  be  worth  preserving,  because  it 
was  an  exact  forecast  of  all  that  has  since  occurred.  It  ap- 
peared in  the  "  Moniteur "  of  July  10,  1804,  on  the  same 
day  with  an  account  of  the  audience  given  by  the  Emperor 
to  all  the  ambassadors  who  had  just  received  fresh  creden- 
tials to  his  Court.  Some  of  the  latter  contained  nattering 
expressions  from  foreign  sovereigns  on  his  accession  to  the 
throne. 

This  is  the  article  : 

"  From  time  immemorial,  the  metropolis  has  been  the 
home  of  hearsay  (les  on  dif).  A  new  rumor  springs  up  every 
day,  to  be  contradicted  on  the  next.  Although  there  has 


AN  ARTICLE  IN  THE  "MONITEUR."  193 

been  of  late  more  activity,  and  a  certain  persistence  in  these 
reports  which  gratify  idle  curiosity,  we  think  it  more  desira- 
ble to  leave  them  to  time,  and  that  wisest  of  all  possible  re- 
plies, silence !  Besides,  what  sensible  Frenchman,  really  in- 
terested in  discovering  the  truth,  will  fail  to  recognize  in  the 
current  rumors  the  offspring  of  malignity  more  or  less  inter- 
ested in  their  circulation  ? 

"  In  a  country  where  so  large  a  number  of  men  are  well 
aware  of  existing  facts,  and  are  able  to  judge  of  those  which 
do  not  exist,  if  any  one  imagines  that  current  rumors  ought 
to  cause  him  real  anxiety,  if  a  credulous  confidence  in  them 
influences  his  commercial  enterprises  or  his  personal  interests, 
either  his  error  is  not  a  lasting  one,  or  he  must  lay  the  blame 
on  his  own  want  of  reflection. 

"  But  foreigners,  persons  attached  to  diplomatic  missions, 
not  having  the  same  means  of  judging,  nor  the  same  knowl- 
edge of  the  country,  are  often  deceived ;  and,  although  for  a 
long  time  past  they  have  had  opportunities  of  observing  how 
invariably  every  event  gives  the  lie  to  current  gossip,  they 
nevertheless  repeat  it  in  foreign  countries,  and  thus  give  rise 
to  most  erroneous  notions  about  France.  "We  therefore  think 
it  advisable  to  say  a  few  words  in  this  journal  on  the  subject 
of  political  gossip. 

"It  is  said  that  the  Emperor  is  about  to  unite  the  Italian 
republic,  the  Ligurian  republic,  the  republic  of  Lucca,  the 
kingdom  of  Etruria,  the  Papal  States,  and,  by  a  necessary 
consequence,  Naples  and  Sicily,  under  his  own  rule.  It  is 
said  that  the  same  fate  is  reserved  for  Switzerland  and  Hol- 
land. It  is  said  that,  by  annexing  Hanover,  the  Emperor 
will  be  enabled  to  become  a  member  of  the  Germanic  Con- 
federation. 

"  Many  deductions  are  drawn  from  these  suppositions ; 
and  the  first  we  remark  is  that  the  Pope  will  abdicate,  and 
that  Cardinal  Fesch  or  Cardinal  Euffo  will  be  raised  to  the 
Pontifical  Throne. 

"  We  have  already  said,  and  we  repeat  it,  that  if  the  in- 


194  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

fiuence  of  France  were  to  be  exerted  in  any  changes  affecting 
the  Sovereign  Pontiff,  it  would  be  exerted  for  the  welfare  of 
the  Holy  Father,  and  to  increase  the  respect  due  to  the  Holy 
See  and  its  possessions,  rather  than  to  diminish  it. 

"  As  to  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  Mr.  Acton's  aggressive 
action  and  his  constantly  hostile  policy  might  in  former  times 
have  afforded  France  a  legitimate  cause  of  war,  which  she 
would  never  have  undertaken  with  the  intention  of  uniting 
the  Two  Sicilies  to  the  French  Empire. 

"  The  Italian  and  Ligurian  republics  and  the  kingdom  of 
Etruria  will  not  cease  to  exist  as  independent  States,  and  it 
is  surely  very  unlikely  that  the  Emperor  would  disown  both 
the  duties  attached  to  the  authority  which  he  derives  from 
the  comitia  of  Lyons,  and  the  personal  glory  he  has  acquired 
by  twice  restoring  to  independence  the  States  which  twice 
he  has  conquered. 

"  We  may  ask,  as  regards  Switzerland,  who  prevented  its 
annexation  to  France  before  the  Act  of  Mediation  ?  This 
Act,  the  immediate  result  of  care  and  thought  on  the  part  of 
the  Emperor,  has  restored  tranquillity  to  those  peoples,  and 
is  a  guarantee  of  their  independence  and  security,  so  long  as 
they  themselves  do  not  destroy  this  guarantee  by  substitut- 
ing the  will  of  one  of  their  constituent  corporations,  or  that 
of  a  party,  for  the  elements  of  which  it  is  composed. 

"Had  France- desired  to  annex  Holland,  Holland  would 
now  be  French,  like  Belgium.  That  she  is  an  independent 
power  is  because  France  felt  with  regard  to  that  country,  as 
she  felt  in  the  case  of  Switzerland,  that  the  localities  required 
an  individual  existence  and  a  particular  kind  of  organization. 

"  A  still  more  absurd  supposition  is  entertained  respect- 
ing Hanover.  The  annexation  of  that  province  would  be 
the  most  fatal  gift  that  could  be  made  to  France,  and  no 
lengthened  consideration  of  the  matter  is  needed  in  order  to 
perceive  this.  Hanover  would  become  a  cause  of  rivalry 
between  the  French  nation  and  that  prince  who  was  the  ally 
and  friend  of  France  at  a  time  when  all  Europe  was  in  coa- 


AN  ARTICLE  IN  THE  "MONITEUR."  195 

lition  against  her.  In  order  to  retain  Hanover,  it  would  be 
necessary  to  keep  up  a  military  force  at  a  cost  out  of  all  pro- 
portion to  the  few  millions  which  constitute  the  whole  of  the 
revenues  of  that  country.  Will  that  Government  which  has 
made  sacrifices  in  order  to  maintain  the  principle  that  a  sim- 
ple and  continuous  frontier-line,  even  as  far  as  the  fortifi- 
cations of  Strasbourg  and  of  Mayence  on  the  right  bank,  is 
necessary,  be  so  shortsighted  as  to  wish  for  the  incorporation 
of  Hanover  ? 

"  But,  it  is  said,  the  advantage  of  belonging  to  the  Ger- 
manic Confederation  depends  on  the  possession  of  Hanover. 
The  mere  title  of  Emperor  of  the  French  is  sufficient  answer 
to  this  singular  idea.  The  Germanic  Confederation  is  com- 
posed of  kings,  electors,  and  princes,  and  it  recognizes,  in  re- 
lation to  itself,  but  one  imperial  dignity.  It  would  be  to 
misjudge  the  noble  pride  of  our  country  to  suppose  she 
would  ever  consent  to  become  an  element  in  any  other  con- 
federation, even  had  such  a  thing  been  compatible  with  na- 
tional dignity.  What  could  have  prevented  France  from  main- 
taining her  rights  in  the  circle  of  Burgundy,  or  those  which 
conferred  on  her  the  possession  of  the  Palatinate  ?  We  may 
even  ask,  with  pardonable  pride,  who  was  it  that  prevented 
France  from  keeping  part  of  the  States  of  Baden  and  of  the 
Swabian  territory  ? 

"  No,  France  will  never  cross  the  Ehine !  Nor  will  her 
armies  pass  over  it,  unless  it  become  necessary  for  her  to 
protect  the  German  Empire  and  its  princes,  who  inspire  an 
interest  in  her  because  of  their  attachment  to  her,  and  their 
value  in  the  balance  of  power  in  Europe. 

"  If  these  are  simply  idle  rumors,  we  have  answered  them 
sufficiently.  If  they  owe  their  origin  to  the  anxious  jealousy 
of  foreign  Powers,  who  are  always  crying  out  that  France  is 
ambitious  in  order  to  cloak  their  own  ambition,  there  is  an- 
other answer  to  be  made.  Owing  to  the  two  coalitions  suc- 
cessively entered  into  against  us,  and  to  the  treaties  of  Cam- 
po  Formio  and  Lun6ville,  France  has  no  province  for  her 


196  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

neighbor  which  she  could  wish  to  annex  ;  and,  if  in  the  past 
she  has  displayed  an  example  of  moderation  unexampled  in 
modern  history,  the  result  is  an  advantage  for  her,  inasmuch 
as  she  need  not  henceforth  take  up  arms. 

"  Her  capital  is  in  the  center  of  her  Empire ;  her  fron- 
tiers are  bounded  by  small  States  which  complete  her  politi- 
cal constitution ;  geographically  she  can  desire  nothing  be- 
longing to  her  neighbors — she  is  therefore  naturally  inimical 
to  none ;  and,  as  there  exists  in  her  respect  neither  another 
Finland,  nor  another  River  Inn,  she  is  in  a  position  which 
no  other  Power  enjoys. 

"As  it  is  with  those  rumors  which  try  to  prove  that 
France  is  inordinately  ambitious,  so  it  is  with  others  of  a  dif- 
ferent nature. 

"  Not  long  ago  rebellion  was  in  our  camps.  Two  days 
back  thirty  thousand  Frenchmen  had  refused  to  embark  at 
Boulogne ;  yesterday  our  legions  were  at  war  with  each 
other,  ten  against  ten,  thirty  against  thirty,  flag  against  flag. 
Our  four  Rhenish  departments  were  informed  that  we  were 
about  to  restore  them  to  their  former  ruler.  To-day,  per- 
haps, it  is  said  that  the  public  treasury  is  empty,  that  the 
public  works  have  been  discontinued,  that  discord  prevails 
everywhere,  and  that  the  taxes  are  unpaid.  If  the  Emperor 
starts  for  the  camps,  it  will  be  said,  perhaps,  that  he  is  hur- 
rying thither  to  restore  peace.  In  fact,  whether  he  remains 
at  Saint  Cloud,  or  goes  to  the  Tuileries,  or  lives  at  Malmai- 
son,  there  will  be  opportunities  for  absurd  reports. 

"And  if  these  rumors,  simultaneously  spread  about  in 
foreign  countries,  were  intended  to  cause  alarm  on  account 
of  the  ambition  of  the  Emperor,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
encourage  any  unbecoming  and  mistaken  acts,  by  leading 
people  to  hope  that  his  Government  is  weak,  we  can  but  re- 
peat the  words  that  a  Minister  was  instructed  to  utter  on 
leaving  a  certain  Court :  '  The  Emperor  of  the  French  de- 
sires war  with  no  one,  whosoever  he  may  be ;  he  dreads 
war  with  no  one.  He  does  not  meddle  with  his  neigh- 


THE  GREAT  OFFICERS  OF  STATE.  197 

bors'  business,  and  he  has  a  right  to  similar  treatment.  He 
has  always  manifested  a  wish  for  a  durable  peace,  but  the 
history  of  his  life  does  not  justify  us  in  thinking  that  he  will 
suffer  himself  to  be  insulted  or  despised.' r 

After  a  refreshing  sojourn  in  the  country,  I  came  back 
once  more  to  the  whirl  of  Court  life,  where  the  fever  of 
vanity  seemed  every  day  to  lay  stronger  hold  of  us. 

The  Emperor  now  appointed  the  great  officers  of  the 
household.  General  Duroc  was  made  Grand  Marshal  of 
the  Palace  ;  Berthier,  Master  of  the  Hunt  (Grand  Veneivr) ; 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  Grand  Chamberlain;  Cardinal  Fesch,. 
High  Almoner;  M.  de  Caulaincourt,  Grand  Equerry;  and 
M.  de  Segur,  Grand  Master  of  the  Ceremonies.  M.  de 
Kemusat  received  the  title  of  First  Chamberlain.  He 
ranked  immediately  next  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  would 
be  chiefly  occupied  by  foreign  affairs,  and  was  to  depnte  my 
husband  to  do  the  greater  part  of  his  duties.  The  matter 
was  thus  arranged  at  first ;  but  soon  after  the  Emperor  ap- 
pointed Chamberlains  in  Ordinary.  Among  them  were  the 
Baron  de  Talleyrand  (a  nephew  of  the  Grand  Chamberlain), 
some  senators,  some  Belgian  gentlemen  of  high  birth,  and,  a 
little  later,  some  French  gentlemen  also. 

With  these  began  little  emulations  as  to  precedence,  and 
discontent  on  account  of  distinctions  which  were  withheld 
from  them.  M.  de  Kemusat  found  himself  exposed  to  con- 
tinual envy,  and  as  it  were  at  war  with  these  personages.  I 
am  now  ashamed  when  I  recall  the  annoyance  which  all  this 
caused  me ;  but  whatever  the  Court  in  which  one  lives — and 
ours  had  become  a  very  real  one — it  is  impossible  not  to 
attach  importance  to  the  trifles  of  which  it  is  composed. 
An  honorable  and  sensible  man  is  often  ashamed  in  his  own 
eyes  of  the  pleasure  or  annoyance  which  he  experiences  in 
the  profession  of  a  courtier,  and  yet  he  can  scarcely  avoid 
either  the  one  or  the  other.  A  ribbon,  a  slight  difference  in 
dress,  permission  to  pass  through  a  particular  door,  the 
entree  to  such  or  such  a  salon — these  are  the  pitiful  causes 


198  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

of  a  constantly  recurring  vexation.  In  vain  do  we  try  to 
harden  ourselves  against  them.  The  importance  in  which 
they  are  held  by  a  great  number  of  persons  obliges  us,  in 
spite  of  ourselves,  to  prize  them.  In  vain  do  sense  and  rea- 
son rebel  against  such  a  use  of  human  faculties ;  however 
dissatisfied  we  may  feel  with  ourselves,  we  must  needs  be- 
come as  small-minded  as  everybody,  else,  and  either  fly  the 
Court  altogether,  or  consent  to  take  seriously  all  the  follies 
that  fill  the  very  air  we  breathe. 

The  Emperor  added  to  the  difficulties  inseparable  from 
the  regulations  of  a  palace  those  of  his  own  temper.  He 
enforced  etiquette  with  the  strictness  of  martial  law.  Cere- 
monies were  gone  through  as  though  by  beat  of  drum; 
everything  was  done  at  double-quick  time;  and  the  per- 
petual hurry,  the  constant  fear  that  Bonaparte  inspired, 
added  to  the  unf  amiliarity  of  a  good  half  of  his  courtiers 
with  formalities  of  the  kind,  rendered  the  Court  dull  rather 
than  dignified.  Every  countenance  wore  an  expression  of 
uneasiness  and  solicitude  in  the  midst  of  all  the  magnificence 
with  which  his  ostentatious  tastes  led  the  Emperor  to  sur- 
round himself. 

Mme.  de  la  Eochefoucauld,  who  was  the  Empress's 
cousin,  was  appointed  her  Lady  of  Honor,  and  Mme.  de  la 
Fayette  Lady  of  the  Bedchamber.  Twelve  Ladies-in-Wait- 
ing  were  nominated,  and  by  degrees  the  number  of  these 
was  augmented.  Many  great  ladies  from  different  parts  of 
the  country  were  included  in  the  list,  persons  who  were 
much  surprised  at  finding  themselves  in  each  other's  society. 
Without  entering  into  any  details  here,  which  would  now 
serve  no  good  purpose,  I  may  mention  that  applications 
were  then  made  by  persons  who  now  affect  a  strict  royalism, 
hardly  compatible  with  the  opinions  they  then  professed. 
It  ought  to  be  frankly  admitted  that  all  classes  wanted  to 
have  their  share  of  these  new  creations,  and  I  could  point 
to  several  persons  who,  after  having  blamed  me  because  I 
came  to  the  First  Consul's  Court  in  consequence  of  an  old 


THE  ANNIVERSARY  OF  JULY  14th.  199 

friendship,  spared  no  efforts  on  their  own  part  to  obtain 
places  at  that  of  the  Emperor,  from  ambitious  motives. 

As  for  the  Empress,  she  was  delighted  to  find  herself 
surrounded  by  a  numerous  suite,  and  one  so  gratifying  to 
her  vanity.  The  victory  she  had  won  over  Mme.  de  la 
Rochefoucauld  by  attaching  her  to  her  person,  the  pleasure 
of  reckoning  M.  d'Aubusson  de  la  Feuillade  among  her 
Chamberlains,  Mme.  d'Arberg  de  Segur  and  the  Mare*chales 
among  her  Ladies-in-Waiting,  intoxicated  her  a  little ;  but  I 
must  admit  that  this  essentially  feminine  feeling  deprived 
her  of  none  of  her  accustomed  grace  and  kindliness.  The 
Empress  always  knew  perfectly  well  how  to  preserve  the 
supremacy  of  her  own  rank,  while  showing  polite  deference 
toward  those  men  or  women  who  added  to  the  splendor  of 
her  Court  by  their  personal  distinction. 

At  this  time  the  "  Ministry  of  General  Police "  was  re- 
constructed, and  Fouche  was  once  more  placed  at  its  head. 

The  18th  Brumaire  was  the  date  at  first  fixed  for  the 
coronation,  and  in  the  mean  time,  to  show  that  the  revolu- 
tionary epochs  were  not  to  be  disregarded,  the  Emperor  re- 
paired in  great  pomp  to  the  Invalides  on  the  14th  of  July, 
and,  after  having  heard  mass,  distributed  the  Cross  of  the 
Legion  of  Honor  to  a  number  of  persons  selected  from  all 
classes  comprised  in  the  Government,  the  army,  and  the 
Court.  I  must  not  omit  to  record  that  on  this  occasion  the 
Empress  looked  young  and  lovely  among  all  the  youthful 
and  handsome  women  by  whom  she  was  surrounded  for  the 
first  time  in  public.  Her  costume  was  admirably  selected 
and  in  perfect  taste.  The  ceremony  took  place  under  burn- 
ing sunshine.  She  appeared  in  broad  daylight,  attired  in  a 
robe  of  rose-colored  tulle,  spangled  with  silver  stars,  and  cut 
very  low,  according  to  the  fashion  of  the  day.  Her  head- 
dress consisted  of  a  great  number  of  diamond  wheat-ears. 
This  brilliant  attire,  the  elegance  of  her  bearing,  the  charm 
of  her  smile,  the  sweetness  of  her  countenance,  produced 
such  an  effect,  that  I  heard  many  persons  who  were  present 


200  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

at  the  ceremony  say  that  the  Empress  outshone  all  the  ladies 
of  her  suite. 

A  few  days  afterward  the  Emperor  set  out  for  the  camp 
at  Boulogne,  and,  if  public  rumor  was  to  be  believed,  the 
English  began  to  feel  really  alarmed  at  the  prospect  of  an 
invasion. 

He  passed  more  than  a  month  in  inspecting  the  coasts 
and  reviewing  the  troops  in  the  various  camps.  The  army 
was  at  that  time  numerous,  flourishing,  and  animated  by  the 
best  spirit.  He  was  present  at  several  engagements  between 
the  vessels  which  were  blockading  us  and  our  flotillas,  which 
by  this  time  had  a  formidable  aspect. 

While  engaged  in  these  military  occupations,  he  fixed, 
by  several  decrees,  the  precedence  and  the  rank  of  the  va- 
rious authorities  which  he  had  created ;  for  his  mind  em- 
braced every  topic  at  once.  He  had  already  formed  a  pri- 
vate intention  of  asking  the  Pope  to  crown  him,  and,  in 
order  to  carry  this  out,  he  neglected  neither  that  address  by 
which  he  might  amicably  carry  his  point,  nor  certain  mea- 
sures by  which  he  might  be  able  to  render  a  refusal  exceed- 
ingly difficult.  He  sent  the  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honor  to 
Cardinal  Caprara,  the  Pope's  legate,  and  accompanied  the 
distinction  by  words  equally  flattering  to  the  Sovereign  Pon- 
tiff and  promising  for  the  reestablishment  of  religion.  These 
fine  phrases  appeared  in  the  "Moniteur."  Nevertheless, 
when  he  communicated  his  project  of  confirming  his  eleva- 
tion by  so  solemn  a  religious  ceremony  to  the  Council  of 
State,  he  had  to  encounter  determined  opposition  from  cer- 
tain of  his  councilors.  Treilhard,  among  others,  resisted  the 
proposal  strongly.  The  Emperor  allowed  him  to  speak,  and 
then  replied :  "  You  do  not  know  the  ground  we  are  standing 
on  so  well  as  I  know  it.  Let  me  tell  you  that  religion  has 
lost  much  less  of  its  power  than  you  think.  You  do  not 
know  all  that  I  effect  by  means  of  the  priests  whom  I  have 
gained  over.  There  are  thirty  departments  in  France  suffi- 
ciently religious  to  make  me  very  glad  that  I  am  not  obliged 


MME.  DE  LA  ROCHEFOUCAULD.  201 

to  dispute  with  the  Pope  for  power  in  them.  It  is  only  by 
committing  every  other  authority  in  succession  to  mine  that 
I  shall  secure  my  own,  that  is  to  say,  the  authority  of  the 
Revolution,  which  we  all  wish  to  consolidate." 

While  the  Emperor  was  inspecting  the  ports,  the  Em- 
press went  to  Aix-la-Chapelle%to  drink  the  waters.  She  was 
accompanied  by  some  of  her  new  household,  and  M.  de 
Remusat  was  ordered  to  follow  her,  and  to  await  the  Em- 
peror, who  was  to  rejoin  her  at  Aix.  I  was  glad  of  this  res- 
pite. I  could  not  disguise  from  myself  that  so  many  new- 
comers were  effacing  by  degrees  her  first  estimate  of  my 
value  to  her,  which  had  owed  much  to  the  non-existence  of 
comparisons ;  and,  although  I  was  yet  young  in  experience 
of  the  world,  I  felt  that  a  short  absence  would  be  useful,  and 
that  I  should  afterward  take,  if  not  the  first  place,  that  of 
my  choice,  and  hold  it  throughout  securely. 

Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld,  who  attended  the  Empress, 
was  then  a  woman  of  between  thirty-six  and  forty  years  old, 
short  and  ill-made,  with  a  striking  countenance,  but  only 
ordinary  abilities.  SJie  had  a  great  deal  of  assurance,  like 
most  plain  women  who  have  had  some  success  notwithstand- 
ing their  defects.  She  was  very  lively,  and  not  at  all  ill-na- 
tured. She  proclaimed  her  adherence  to  all  the  opinions  of 
those  who  were  called  "  aristocrats  "  by  the  Revolution ;  and, 
as  she  would  have  been  puzzled  to  reconcile  those  views  with 
her  present  position,  she  made  up  her  mind  to  laugh  at  them, 
and  would  jest  about  herself  with  the  utmost  good  humor. 
The  Emperor  liked  her  because  she  was  quick,  frivolous,  and 
incapable  of  scheming.  Indeed,  no  Court  in  which  women 
were  so  numerous  ever  offered  less  opportunity  for  any  kind 
of  intrigue.  Affairs  of  state  were  absolutely  confined  to  the 
cabinet  of  the  Emperor  only ;  we  were  ignorant  of  them, 
and  we  knew  that  nobody  could  meddle  with  them.  The 
few  persons  in  whom  the  Emperor  confided  were  wholly 
devoted  to  the  execution  of  his  will,  and  absolutely  unap- 
proachable. Duroc,  Savary,  and  Maret  never  allowed  an  un- 


202  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtilMUSAT. 

necessary  word  to  escape  them,  confining  themselves  strictly 
to  communicating  to  us  without  delay  such  orders  as  they 
received.  We  were  in  their  sight  and  in  our  own  mere 
machines,  simply  and  solely  doing  those  things  which  we 
were  ordered  to  do,  and  of  about  as  much  importance  as 
the  elegant  articles  of  new  furniture  with  which  the  pal- 
aces of  the  Tuileries  and  Saint  Cloud  were  now  profusely 
adorned. 

I  remarked  at  this  time,  with  some  amusement,  that,  as 
by  degrees  the  grands  seigneurs  of  former  days  came  to 
Court,  they  all  experienced,  no  matter  how  widely  their 
characters  differed,  a  certain  sense  of  disappointment  curious 
to  observe.  When  at  first  they  once  more  breathed  the  air  of 
palaces,  found  themselves  again  among  their  former  associates 
and  in  the  atmosphere  of  their  youth,  beheld  anew  decora- 
tions, throne-rooms,  and  Court  costumes,  and  heard  the  forms 
of  speech  habitual  in  royal  dwellings,  they  yielded  to  the 
delightful  illusion.  They  fondly  believed  that  they  might 
conduct  themselves  as  they  had  been  accustomed  to  do  in  those 
same  palaces,  where  all  but  the  master  remained  unchanged. 
But  a  harsh  word,  a  peremptory  order,  the  pressure  of  an 
arbitrary  will,  soon  reminded  them  roughly  that  everything 
was  new  in  this  unique  Court.  Then  it  was  strange  to  see 
how,  despite  all  their  efforts,  they  lost  their  presence  of  mind, 
feeling  the  ground  uncertain  under  their  feet,  and  became 
constrained  and  uneasy  in  all  their  futile  little  ways.  They 
were  too  vain  or  too  weak  to  substitute  a  grave  bearing,  un- 
like the  manners  of  their  past,  for  their  former  customs,  and 
they  did  not  know  what  course  to  adopt.  The  arts  of  the 
courtier  availed  nothing  with  Bonaparte,  arid  so  profited  them 
not  at  all.  It  was  not  safe  to  remain  a  man  in  his  presence — 
that  is  to  say,  to  preserve  the  use  of  one's  intellectual  facul- 
ties ;  it  was  easier  and  quicker  for  everybody,  or  nearly  every- 
body, to  assume  the  attitude  of  servility.  If  I  chose,  I  could 
tell  exactly  the  individuals  to  whom  such  a  course  came  most 
readily ;  but,  if  I  were  to  go  more  at  length  into  this  subject, 


THE  EMPEROR  AT  AIX-LA-CHAPELLE. 

I  should  give  my  Memoirs  the  color  of  a  satire,  which  is 
neither  acccording  to  niy  taste  nor  my  intention. 

While  the  Emperor  was  at  Boulogne,  he  sent  his  brother 
Joseph  to  Paris,  where  all  the  governing  bodies  presented 
addresses  to  him  and  his  wife.  Thus,  he  assigned  each  per- 
son his  own  place,  and  dictated  supremacy  to  some  and  ser- 
vitude to  others.  On  the  3d  of  September  he  rejoined  his 
wife  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  and  remained  there  some  days,  hold- 
ing a  brilliant  Court  and  receiving  the  German  Princes. 
During  this  sojourn,  M.  de  Eemusat  was  directed  to  send  to 
Paris  for  the  company  of  the  second  theatre,  then  managed 
by  Picard,  and  several  fetes  were  given  to  the  Electors,  which, 
although  they  did  not  approach  the  magnificence  of  later  oc- 
casions, were  very  splendid.  The  Elector  Arch-Chancellor 
of  the  German  Empire  and  the  Elector  of  Baden  paid  assidu- 
ous court  to  our  sovereigns.  The  Emperor  and  Empress 
visited  Cologne,  and  ascended  the  Rhine  as  far  as  Mayence, 
where  they  were  met  by  a  crowd  of  princes  and  distinguished 
foreigners.  This  excursion  lasted  until  the  month  of  October. 

On  the  14th  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  gave  birth  to  a  sec- 
ond son.*  Bonaparte  arrived  in  Paris  a  few  days  later.  This 
event  was  a  great  source  of  happiness  to  the  Empress.  She 
believed  that  it  would  have  a  most  favorable  effect  upon  her 
future,  and  yet  at  that  very  moment  a  new  plot  was  being 
formed  against  her,  which  she  only  succeeded  in  defeating 
after  much  effort  and  mental  suffering. 

Ever  since  we  had  learned  that  the  Pope  would  come  to 
Paris  for  the  coronation  of  the  Emperor,  the  Bonaparte  fam- 
ily had  been  exceedingly  anxious  to  prevent  Mme.  Bonaparte 
from  having  a  personal  share  in  the  ceremony.  The  jealousy 
of  our  Princesses  was  strongly  excited  on  this  point.  It 
seemed  to  them  that  such  an  honor  would  place  too  great  a 

*  The  second  son  of  Queen  Hortense  was  Napoleon  Louis.  This  Prince  died 
suddenly  during  the  insurrection  of  the  Pontifical  States  against  the  Pope,  in 
which  he  took  part.  The  third  son  of  the  Queen,  Napoleon  III.,  was  born  on  the 
20th  of  April,  1808. 


204  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R$MUSAT. 

distance  between  themselves  and  their  sister-in-law,  and,  be- 
sides, dislike  needs  no  motive  of  interest  personal  to  itself  to 
make  anything  which  is  a  gratification  to  its  object  distaste- 
ful. The  Empress  ardently  longed  for  her  coronation,  which 
she  believed  would  establish  her  rank  and  her  security,  and 
the  silence  of  her  husband  alarmed  her.  He  appeared  to  be 
hesitating,  and  Joseph  spared  no  argument  to  induce  him  to 
make  his  wife  merely  a  witness  of  the  ceremony.  He  even 
went  so  far  as  to  revive  the  question  of  the  divorce,  advising 
Bonaparte  to  profit  by  the  approaching  event  to  decide  upon 
it.  He  pointed  out  the  advantage  of  an  alliance  with  some 
foreign  princess,  or  at  least  with  the  heiress  of  a  great  name 
in  France,  and  cleverly  held  out  the  hope  that  such  a  mar- 
riage would  give  him  of  having  a  direct  heir ;  and  he  spoke 
with  all  the  more  chance  of  being  listened  to,  because  he 
insisted  strongly  on  the  personal  disinterestedness  of  advice 
which,  if  taken,  might  remove  himself  from  all  chance  of 
the  succession.  The  Emperor,  incessantly  harassed  by  his 
family,  appeared  to  be  impressed  by  his  brother's  arguments, 
and  a  few  words  which  escaped  him  threw  his  wife  into  ex- 
treme distress.  Her  former  habit  of  confiding  all  her  trou- 
bles to  me  now  led  her  to  restore  me  to  her  confidence.  I 
was  exceedingly  puzzled  how  to  advise  her,  and  not  a  little 
afraid  of  committing  myself  in  so  serious  a  matter.  An  un- 
expected incident  was  near  bringing  about  the  very  thing 
which  we  dreaded. 

For  some  time  Mine.  Bonaparte  had  perceived  an  increase 
of  intimacy  between  her  husband  and  Mme.  de  — — .  In 
vain  did  I  entreat  her  not  to  furnish  the  Emperor  with  a 
pretext  for  a  quarrel,  which  would  be  made  use  of  against 
her.  She  was  too  full  of  her  grievance  to  be  prudent,  and, 
in  spite  of  my  warning,  she  watched  for  an  opportunity  of 
confirming  her  suspicions.  At  Saint  Cloud  the  Emperor 
occupied  the  apartment  which  opens  upon  the  garden,  and  is 
on  the  same  level.  Above  this  apartment  was  a  small  suite 
of  rooms  communicating  with  his  own  by  a  back  staircase, 


TEE  EMPRESS'S  SUSPICIONS  CONFIRMED.       205 

which  he  had  recently  had  furnished,  and  the  Empress 
strongly  suspected  the  purpose  of  this  mysterious  retreat. 
One  morning,  when  there  were  several  persons  in  her  draw- 
ing-room, the  Empress,  seeing  Mme.  de (who  was  then 

resident  at  Saint  Cloud)  leave  the  room,  suddenly  rose  a  few 
minutes  afterward,  and,  taking  me  apart  into  a  window,  said : 
"  I  am  going  to  clear  up  my  doubts  this  very  moment ;  stay 
here  with  all  these  people,  and,  if  you  are  asked  where  I 
have  gone,  say  that  the  Emperor  sent  for  me."  I  tried  to 
restrain  her,  but  she  was  quite  ungovernable,  and  would  not 
listen  to  me.  She  went  out  at  the  same  moment,  and  I  re- 
mained, excessively  apprehensive  of  what  might  be  going  to 
happen.  In  about  half  an  hour  the  Empress  reentered  the 
room  by  the  opposite  door.  She  seemed  exceedingly  agi- 
tated, and  almost  unable  to  control  herself,  but  took  her  seat 
before  an  embroidery  frame.  I  remained  at  a  distance  from 
her,  apparently  occupied  by  my  needlework,  and  avoiding 
her  eye ;  but  I  could  easily  perceive  her  agitation  by  the  ab- 
ruptness of  all  her  movements,  which  were  generally  slow 
and  soft.  At  last,  as  she  was  incapable  of  keeping  silence 
under  strong  emotion  of  any  kind,  she  could  no  longer  endure 
this  constraint,  and,  calling  to  me  in  a  loud  voice,  she  bade  me 
follow  her.  When  we  had  reached  her  bedroom,  she  said : 
"All  is  lost.  It  is  but  too  true.  I  went  to  look  for  the 
Emperor  in  his  cabinet,  and  he  was  not  there ;  then  I  went 
up  the  back  stairs  into  the  upper  room.  I  found  the  door 
shut,  but  I  could  hear  Bonaparte's  voice,  and  also  that  of 

Mme.  de .     I  knocked  loudly  at  the  door,  and  called  out 

that  I  was  there.  You  may  imagine  the  start  I  gave  them. 
It  was  some  time  before  the  door  was  opened,  and  when  at 
last  I  was  admitted,  though  I  know  I  ought  to  have  been 
able  to  control  myself,  it  was  impossible,  and  I  reproached 

them  bitterly.     Mme.  de began  to  cry,  and  Bonaparte 

flew  into  so  violent  a  passion  that  I  had  hardly  time  to  fly 
before  him  and  escape  his  rage.  I  am  still  trembling  at  the 
thought  of  it ;  I  did  not  know  to  what  excess  his  anger  might 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

have  gone.  JSTo  doubt  he  will  soon  come  here,  and  I  may 
expect  a  terrible  scene."  The  emotion  of  the  Empress  moved 
me  deeply.  "  Do  not,"  said  I,  "  commit  a  second  fault,  for 
the  Emperor  will  never  forgive  you  for  having  admitted  any 
one,  no  matter  whom,  to  your  confidence.  Let  me  leave  you, 
Madame.  You  must  wait  for  him ;  let  him  find  you  alone." 
I  returned  at  once  to  the  drawing-room,  where  I  found 
Mme.  de  .  She  glanced  at  me  nervously ;  she  was  ex- 
tremely pale,  talked  almost  incoherently,  and  tried  hard  to 
find  out  whether  I  knew  what  had  passed.  I  resumed  my 

work  as  tranquilly  as  I  could,  but  I  think  Mme.  de , 

having  seen  me  leave  the  room,  must  have  known  that  the 
Empress  had  told  me.  Every  one  was  looking  at  every  one 
else,  and  nobody  could  make  out  what  was  happening. 

A  few  minutes  afterward  we  heard  a  great  noise  in  the 
apartment  of  the  Empress,  and  of  course  I  knew  that  the 
Emperor  was  there,  and  that  a  violent  quarrel  was  taking 

place.  Mme.  de called  for  her  carriage,  and  at  once 

left  for  Paris.  This  sudden  departure  was  not  likely  to  mend 
matters.  I  was  to  go  to  Paris  in  the  evening.  Before  I  left 
Saint  Cloud  the  Empress  sent  for  me,  and  told  me,  with 
many  tears,  that  Bonaparte,  after  having  insulted  her  in 
every  possible  way,  and  smashed  some  of  the  furniture  in  his 
rage,  had  signified  to  her  that  she  was  at  once  to  quit  Saint 
Cloud.  He  declared  that,  weary  of  her  jealous  spying,  he 
was  determined  to  shake  off  such  a  yoke,  and  to  listen  hence- 
forth only  to  the  counsels  of  his  policy,  which  demanded  that 
he  should  take  a  wife  capable  of  giving  him  children.  She 
added  that  he  had  sent  orders  to  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  to 
come  to  Saint  Cloud  in  order  to  make  arrangements  for  the 
departure  of  his  mother,  and  she  added  that  she  was  now  lost 
beyond  redemption.  She  then  directed  me  to  go  and  see 
her  daughter  in  Paris  on  the  following  day,  and  to  inform 
her  exactly  of  all  that  had  occurred. 

Accordingly,  I  went  to  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte.  She  had 
just  seen  her  brother,  who  had  come  from  Saint  Cloud.  The 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  207 

Emperor  had  signified  to  him  his  resolution  to  divorce  his 
wife,  and  Eugene  had  received  the  communication  with  his 
accustomed  submission,  but  refused  all  the  personal  favors 
which  were  offered  to  him  as  a  consolation,  declaring  that 
from  the  moment  such  a  misfortune  should  fall  upon  his 
mother  he  would  accept  nothing,  but  that  he  would  follow 
her  to  any  retreat  which  might  be  assigned  to  her,  were  it 
even  at  Martinique,  as  he  was  resolved  to  sacrifice  all  to  her 
great  need  of  comfort.  Bonaparte  had  appeared  to  be  deeply 
impressed  by  this  generous  resolution ;  he  had  listened  to  all 
that  Eugene  said  in  unbroken  silence. 

I  found  Mme.  Louis  less  affected  by  this  event  than  I 
expected.  "  I  can  not  interfere  in  any  way,"  she  said.  "  My 
husband  has  positively  forbidden  me  to  do  so.  My  mother 
has  been  very  imprudent.  She  is  about  to  forfeit  a  crown, 
but,  at  any  rate,  she  will  have  peace.  Ah !  believe  me,  there 
are  women  more  unhappy  than  she."  She  spoke  with  such 
profound  sadness  that  I  could  not  fail  to  read  her  thoughts ; 
but,  as  she  never  allowed  a  word  to  be  said  about  her  own 
personal  position,  I  did  not  venture  to  reply  in  such  a. way  as 
would  make  it  evident  that  I  had  understood  her.  "  And, 
besides,"  said  she  in  conclusion,  "  if  there  be  any  chance  at  all 
of  setting  this  matter  right,  it  is  the  influence  of  my  mother's 
tears  and  her  gentleness  over  Bonaparte.  Believe  me,  it  is 
better  to  leave  them  to  themselves — not  to  interfere  at  all 
between  them  ^  and  I  strongly  advise  you  not  to  return  to 
Saint  Cloud,  especially  as  Mme.  N—  -  has  mentioned  you, 
and  believes  that  you  would  give  hostile  advice." 

I  remained  away  from  Saint  Cloud  for  two  days,  in  ac- 
cordance with  the  advice  of  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte ;  but  on 
the  third  I  rejoined  my  Empress,  concerning  whom  I  felt 
the  deepest  solicitude.  I  found  her  relieved  from  one  press- 
ing trouble.  Her  submission  and  her  tears  had,  in  fact,  dis- 
armed Bonaparte ;  his  anger  and  its  cause  were  no  longer  in 
question.  A  tender  reconciliation  had  taken  place  between 
them ;  but,  immediately  afterward,  the  Emperor  had  thrown 
18 


208  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE  REMUS  AT. 

his  wife  into  fresh  agitation  by  letting  her  see  that  he  was 
seriously  entertaining  the  idea  of  a  divorce.  "  I  have  not 
the  courage,"  he  said  to  her,  "  to  come  to  a  final  resolution ; 
and  if  you  let  me  see  that  you  are  too  deeply  afflicted — if 
you  can  render  me  obedience  only — I  feel  that  I  shall  never 
have  the  strength  to  oblige  you  to  leave  me.  I  tell  you 
plainly,  however,  that  it  is  my  earnest  desire  that  you  should 
resign  yourself  to  the  interests  of  my  policy,  and  yourself 
spare  me  all  the  difficulties  of  this  painful  separation."  The 
Empress  told  me  that  he  wept  bitterly  while  uttering  these 
terrible  words.  I  remember  well  how,  as  I  listened  to  her, 
I  conceived  in  my  mind  the  plan  of  a  great  and  generous 
sacrifice  which  she  might  make  to  France. 

Believing,  as  I  then  believed,  that  the  fate  of  the  nation 
was  irrevocably  united  with  that  of  Napoleon,  I  thought 
there  would  be  true  greatness  of  soul  in  devoting  one's  self 
to  all  that  might  secure  and  confirm  that  destiny.  I  thought, 
had  I  been  the  woman  to  whom  such  a  representation  had 
been  made,  that  I  should  have  had  courage  to  abandon  the 
brilliant  position  which,  after  all,  was  grudged  to  me,  and 
retire  into  a  peaceful  solitude,  satisfied  with  the  sacrifice  that 
I  had  made.  But,  when  I  saw  in  Mme.  Bonaparte's  face 
what  suffering  the  Emperor's  words  had  caused  her,  I  re- 
membered that  my  mother  had  once  said  that  advice  to  be 
useful  must  be  adapted  to  the  character  of  the  person  to 
whom  it  is  offered,  and  I  refrained  from  uttering  the  lofty 
sentiments  of  which  my  mind  was  full.  I  bethought  me  in 
time  of  the  dread  with  which  the  Empress  would  contem- 
plate retirement,  of  her  taste  for  luxury  and  display,  and  of 
the  devouring  ennui  to  which  she  would  inevitably  fall  a 
prey  when  she  had  broken  with  the  world ;  and  I  confined 
myself  to  saying  that  I  saw  only  two  alternatives  for  her. 
The  first  of  these  was  to  sacrifice  herself  bravely  and  with 
dignity ;  in  which  case  she  ought  to  go  to  Malmaison  on  the 
following  morning,  and  thence  to  write  to  the  Emperor,  de- 
claring that  she  restored  his  freedom  to  him  ;  or  to  remain 


THE  POPE  TO  ARRIVE  IN  PARIS.  209 

where  she  was,  acknowledging  herself  to  be  unable  to  decide 
upon  her  own  fate,  and,  though  always  ready  to  obey,  posi- 
tively determined  to  await  his  direct  orders  before  she  should 
descend  from  the  throne  on  which  he  had  placed  her. 

She  adopted  the  second  alternative.  Assuming  the  atti- 
tude of  a  resigned  and  submissive  victim,  she  excited  the 
jealous  anger  of  all  the  Bonapartes  by  her  gentle  demeanor. 
Yielding,  sad,  considerate  of  everybody,  entirely  obedient, 
but  also  skillful  in  availing  herself  of  her  ascendancy  over 
her  husband,  she  reduced  him  to  a  condition  of  agitation  and 
indecision  from  which  he  could  not  escape. 

At  length,  one  memorable  evening,  after  long  hesitation, 
during  which  the  Empress  suffered  mortal  anguish  and  sus- 
pense, the  Emperor  told  her  that  the  Pope  was  about  to 
arrive  in  Paris,  that  he  would  crown  them  both,  and  that  she 
had  better  at  once  begin  to  prepare  for  the  great  ceremony. 
It  is  easy  to  picture  to  one's  fancy  the  joy  with  which  such 
a  termination  to  all  her  misery  filled  the  heart  of  the  Em- 
press, and  also  the  discomfiture  of  the  Bonapartes,  especially 
Joseph ;  for  the  Emperor  had  not  failed  to  acquaint  his  wife, 
according  to  his  usual  custom,  with  the  attempts  that  had 
been  made  to  induce  him  to  decide  on  a  divorce,  and  it  is 
only  reasonable  to  suppose  that  these  revelations  increased 
the  ill  feeling  already  existing  on  both  sides. 

On  this  occasion  the  Empress  confided  to  me  the  ardent 
desire  she  had  long  felt  to  have  her  marriage, 'which  had 
been  civilly  contracted,  confirmed  by  a  religious  ceremony. 
She  said  that  she  had  sometimes  spoken  of  this  to  the  Em- 
peror, and  that,  although  he  had  not  evinced  any  repugnance, 
he  had  objected  that,  even  if  a  priest  were  brought  into  the 
palace  to  perform  the  religious  rite,  it  could  not  be  done 
with  sufficient  secrecy  to  conceal  the  fact  that  until  then  they 
had  not  been  married  according  to  the  Church.  Either  that 
was  his  real  reason,  or  he  wanted  to  hold  this  means  of  break- 
ing his  marriage  in  reserve  for  future  use,  should  he  consider 
it  really  advisable  to  do  so ;  at  any  rate,  he  had  rejected  his 


210  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

wife's  pleading  firmly,  but  mildly.  She  therefore  deter- 
mined to  await  the  arrival  of  the  Pope,  being  persuaded, 
very  reasonably,  that  his  Holiness  would  espouse  her  inter- 
ests on  such  a  point. 

The  entire  Court  was  now  occupied  in,  preparations  for 
the  ceremony  of  the  coronation.  The  Empress  was  continu- 
ally surrounded  by  all  the  best  artists  in  millinery  in  Paris, 
and  the  venders  of  the  most  fashionable  wares.  With  their 
assistance  she  decided  on  the  new  form  of  Court  dress,  and 
on  her  own  costume.  As  may  be  supposed,  there  was  no 
thought  of  resuming  the  hoop  worn  under  the  old  regime; 
it  was  merely  proposed  that  to  our  ordinary  garments  the 
long  mantle  (which  was  still  worn  after  the  return  of  the 
King)  should  be  added,  and  also  a  very  becoming  ruff  of 
blonde,  which  was  attached  to  the  shoulders  and  came  high 
up  at  the  back  of  the  head,  as  we  see  it  in  portraits  of  Cath- 
arine de'  Medici.  The  use  of  this  ruff  was  afterward  dis- 
continued, although  it  was,  in  my  opinion,  very  pretty,  and 
lent  dignity  and  grace  to  the  whole  costume.  The  Empress 
already  possessed  diamonds  of  considerable  value,  but  the 
Emperor  not  only  made  costly  additions  to  her  jewel-case, 
but  also  placed  the  diamonds  belonging  to  the  national  trea- 
sury in  her  hands,  and  desired  that  she  should  wear  them  on 
the  great  day.  A  diadem  of  brilliants,  above  which  the 
Emperor  was  with  his  own  hands  to  place  the  closed  crown 
upon  her  head,  was  made  for  her,  and  the  ceremony  was  pri- 
vately rehearsed.  David,  who  afterward  painted  the  great 
picture  of  the  coronation  of  the  Emperor  and  Empress,  at- 
tended these  rehearsals,  and  arranged  the  positions  of  each. 
The  coronation  of  the  Emperor  had  been  eagerly  discussed. 
The  first  idea  was  that  the  Pope  should  place  the  diadem 
upon  the  head  of  the  Emperor ;  but  Bonaparte  refused  to 
receive  the  crown  from  any  hand  but  his  own,  and  uttered 
on  that  occasion  the  sentence  which  Mme.  de  Stael  has 
quoted  in  her  work :  "  I  found  the  crown  of  France  upon 
the  ground,  and  I  picked  it  up." 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  CORONATION.         211 

At  length,  after  a  great  deal  of  discussion,  it  was  ar- 
ranged that  the  Emperor  was  to  crown  himself,  and  that  the 
Pope  should  only  give  his  benediction.  Everything  was 
done  to  make  the  fetes  brilliant  and  popular,  and  people  be- 
gan to  flock  into  Paris.  Considerable  bodies  of  troops  were 
ordered  up  to  the  capital ;  all  the  chief  authorities  of  the 
provinces  were  invited ;  the  Arch-Chancellor  of  the  German 
Empire  and  a  great  number  of  foreigners  arrived.  Party 
spirit  slumbered  for  the  time  being,  and  the  whole  city  gave 
itself  up  to  the  excitement  and  curiosity  of  so  novel  an  inci- 
dent, and  a  spectacle  which  would  doubtless  be  magnificent. 
The  shopkeepers  drove  a  thriving  trade;  workmen  of  all 
kinds  were  employed,  and  rejoiced  in  the  occasion  that  pro- 
cured them  such  a  stroke  of  luck ;  the  population  of  the  city 
seemed  to  be  doubled ;  commerce,  public  establishments,  and 
theatres  all  profited  by  the  occasion,  and  all  was  bustle  and 
activity. 

The  poets  were  requested  to  celebrate  this  great  event. 
Ch6nier  was  ordered  to  compose  a  tragedy  for  the  perpetual 
commemoration  of  it,  and  he  took  Cyrus  for  his  hero.  The 
Opera  was  to  give  splendid  ballets.  To  us  dwellers  in  the 
palace  money  was  given  for  our  expenses,  and  the  Empress 
presented  each  of  her  Ladies-in-Waiting  with  handsome  dia- 
mond ornaments.  The  Court  dress  of  the  gentlemen  about 
the  Emperor  was  also  regulated.  This  becoming  costume 
consisted  of  the  French  coat,  in  different  colors  for  those 
who  belonged  to  the  department  of  the  Grand  Marshal,  the 
Grand  Chamberlain,  and  the  Grand  Equerry  respectively; 
silver  embroidery  for  all ;  a  cloak  of  velvet  lined  with  satin, 
worn  over  one  shoulder;  a  sash,  a  lace  cravat,  and  a  hat 
turned  up  in  front,  with  a  white  plume.  The  Princes  were 
to  wear  white  coats  embroidered  in  gold ;  the  Emperor  was 
to  wear  a  long  robe  somewhat  resembling  that  worn  by  our 
kings,  a  mantle  of  purple  velvet  sewn  with  golden  bees,  and 
his  crown,  a  golden  wreath  of  laurels  like  that  of  the  Caesars. 

It  seems  like  a  dream,  or  a  story  from  the  "Arabian 


212  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

Nights,"  when  I  recall  the  luxury  that  was  displayed  at  that 
period,  the  perpetual  disputes  about  precedence,  the  claims 
of  rank,  and  all  the  demands  made  by  everybody.  The 
Emperor  directed  that  the  Princesses  should  carry  the  Em- 
press's mantle ;  there  was  the  greatest  difficulty  in  inducing 
them  to  consent  to  do  this ;  and  I  remember  well  that,  when 
at  last  they  did  consent,  they  performed  their  office  with  so 
ill  a  grace  that  the  Empress,  overpowered  by  the  weight  of 
her  magnificent  robe,  could  hardly  walk,  .for  they  would 
scarcely  lift  the  folds  off  the  ground.  They  obtained  per- 
mission to  have  their  own  trains  borne  by  their  respective 
chamberlains,  and  this  distinction  somewhat  consoled  them 
for  the  obligation  that  was  imposed  upon  them.* 

In  the  mean  time  we  learned  that  the  Pope  had  left 
Kome  on  the  2d  of  November.  The  slowness  of  his  jour- 
ney and  the  vast  scale  of  the  preparations  rendered  it  neces- 
sary to  put  off  the  coronation  until  the  2d  of  December ; 
and  on  the  24th  of  November  the  Court  went  to  Fontaine- 
bleau  to  receive  his  Holiness,  who  arrived  there  on  the  fol- 
lowing day. 

Before  I  close  this  chapter,  I  wish  to  mention  a  circum- 
stance which  ought,  it  seems  to  me,  to  be  recorded.  The 
Emperor  had  for  the  moment  relinquished  the  idea  of  a 
divorce,  but,  being  still  extremely  anxious  to  have  an  heir,  he 
asked  his  wife  whether  she  would  consent  to  acknowledge  a 
child  of  his  as  her  own,  and  to  feign  pregnancy,  so  that  every 

*  The  Memoirs  of  Count  Miot  de  Melito  contain  some  curious  particulars  of 
Court  life  during  the  Consulate  and  the  Empire ;  the  quarrels  of  Bonaparte  with 
his  brothers  on  account  of  the  succession  to  the  throne,  and  the  adoption  of  the 
son  of  Louis  Bonaparte.  He  also  narrates  in  detail  the  disputes  about  prece- 
dence, and  the  vexed  question  of  the  Empress's  mantle.  It  was  after  a  long 
discussion  between  the  Arch-Chancellor,  the  Arch-Treasurer,  the  Minister  of  the 
Interior,  the  Grand  Equerry,  and  the  Grand  Marshal  of  the  Court,  the  Princes 
Louis  and  Joseph,  and  the  Emperor  himself,  that  a  decision  was  arrived  at 
which  deprived  those  Princes  of  the  large  mantle  of  ermine — "  an  attribute,"  as 
it  was  called,  "of  sovereignty"  ;  and  that  it  was  resolved  the  words  "to  hold 
up  the  mantle "  should  be  used  in  the  proces-verbal  instead  of  "  to  carry  the 
train."  ("  MSmoires  du  Comte  Miot  de  Melito,"  vol.  ii.,  p.  323,  et  seq.)—P.  R. 


I 
BONAPARTE'S  PLAN.  213 

one  should  be  deceived.  She  consented  to  accede  to  any 
wish  of  his  on  this  point.  Then  Bonaparte  sent  for  Corvisart, 
his  chief  physician,  in  whom  he  had  well-merited  confidence, 
and  confided  his  plan  to  him.  "  If  I  succeed,"  said  he,  "  in 
making  sure  of  the  birth  of  a  boy  who  shall  be  my  own  son, 
I  want  you,  as  a  witness  of  the  pretended  confinement  of  the 
Empress,  to  do  all  that  would  be  necessary  to  give  the  device 
every  appearance  of  reality."  Corvisart,  who  felt  that  his 
honor  and  probity  were  injured  by  the  mere  proposition, 
refused  to  do  what  the  Emperor  required  of  him,  but  prom- 
ised inviolable  secrecy.  It  was  not  until  long  afterward,  and 
since  Bonaparte's  second  marriage,  that  he  confided  this  fact 
to  me,  while  at  the  same  time  he  afiinned  in  the  strongest 
terms  the  legitimate  birth  of  the  King  of  Home,  concerning 
which  some  entirely  unfounded  doubts  had  been  raised. 


CHAPTEE  X. 

The  Pope's  Arrival  in  Paris — The  Plebiscitum — The  Marriage  of  the  Empress 
Josephine — The  Coronation  Fetes  in  the  Champ  de  Mars,  at  the  Ope'ra,  etc. — 
The  Court  of  the  Empress. 

THE  Pope  was  probably  induced  to  come  to  France  solely 
by  the  representations  which  were  made  to  him  of  advan- 
tages and  concessions  to  be  gained  by  such  a  gracious  act. 
He  arrived  at  Fontainebleau  with  the  intention  of  lending 
himself  to  all  that  might  be  required  of  him,  within  legiti- 
mate bounds ;  and,  notwithstanding  the  superiority  on  which 
the  conqueror  who  had  forced  him  to  take  this  unheard-of 
step  plumed  himself,  and  the  small  respect  in  which  the 
Court  held  a  sovereign  who  did  not  reckon  the  sword  among 
the  insignia  of  his  royalty,  he  impressed  everybody  by  his 
dignity  and  the  gravity  of  his  bearing. 

The  Emperor  went  to  meet  him  at  a  few  leagues'  distance 
from  the  chateau,  and,  when  the  carriages  met,  he  alighted, 
as  did  his  Holiness  also.  The  Pope  and  the  Emperor  em- 
braced, and  then  got  into  the  same  carriage,  the  Emperor 
entering  first,  in  order,  as  the  "Moniteur"  of  the  day  ex- 
plained, to  give  the  Pope  the  right-hand  seat,  and  so  they 
came  to  the  palace. 

The  Pope  arrived  on  Sunday,*  at  noon;  and  having 
rested  for  a  while  in  his  own  apartment,  to  which  he  was 
conducted  by  the  Grand  Chamberlain  (i.  e.,  M.  de  Talley- 
rand), the  Grand  Marshal,  and  the  Grand  Master  of  Cere- 
monies, he  visited  the  Emperor,  who  met  him  outside  the 

*  November  25,  1804,  or  4th  Frimaire,  year  13.— P.  R. 


ARRIVAL  OF  THE  POPE.  215 

door  of  his  cabinet,  and,  after  an  interview  of  half  an 
hour's  duration,  reconducted  him  to  the  great  hall,  which 
was  then  called  "  The  Hall  of  the  Great  Officers."  The 
Empress  had  received  instructions  to  place  the  Pope  at  her 
right  hand. 

After  these  visits,  Prince  Louis,  the  Ministers,  the  Arch- 
Chancellor,  the  Arch-Treasurer,  Cardinal  Fesch,  and  the 
great  officers  then  at  Fontainebleau,  were  presented  to  the 
Pope,  who  received  them  all  most  graciously.  He  afterward 
dined  with  the  Emperor  and  retired  early. 

The  Pope  was  at  this  time  sixty-two  years  of  age,  tall  and 
upright  of  figure,  and  with  a  handsome,  grave,  benevolent 
face.  He  was  attended  by  a  numerous  suite  of  Italian  priests 
— anything  but  impressive  personages,  whose  rough,  noisy, 
and  vulgar  manners  contrasted  strangely  with  the  grave  good 
breeding  of  the  French  clergy.  The  Palace  of  Fontainebleau 
presented  a  strange  spectacle  just  then,  inhabited  as  it  was 
by  so  extraordinary  a  medley  of  persons — sovereigns,  princes, 
military  officers,  priests,  women,  all  gathered  together  in  the 
different  salons  at  the  prescribed  hours.  On  the  day  after 
his  arrival,  his  Holiness  -received  all  those  persons  belonging 
to  the  Court  who  desired  that  honor,  in  his  own  apartment. 
We  had  the  privilege  of  kissing  his  hand  and  receiving  his 
blessing.  His  presence  in  such  a  place,  and  on  so  great  an 
occasion,  affected  me  very  deeply. 

After  these  receptions,  visits  were  again  interchanged  be- 
tween the  sovereigns.  On  the  occasion  of  her  second  inter- 
view with  the  Pope,  the  Empress  carried  out  the  intention 
she  had  secretly  formed,  and  confided  to  him  that  her  mar- 
riage had  been  a  civil  ceremony  only.  His  Holiness,  after 
having  commended  her  for  the  good  use  she  made  of  her 
power,  and  addressing  her  as  "  My  daughter,"  promised  her 
that  he  would  require  of  the  Emperor  that  his  coronation 
should  be  preceded  by  the  ceremony  necessary  to  legiti- 
mize his  marriage  with  her ;  and,  in  fact,  the  Emperor  was 
obliged  to  consent  to  this.  On  their  return  to  Paris  Cardinal 


216  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

Fesch  married  Bonaparte  to  Josephine,  as  I  shall  presently 
relate. 

On  the  Monday  evening  a  concert  was  to  take  place  in 
the  apartments  of  the  Empress.  The  Pope,  however,  declined 
to  be  present,  and  retired  just  as  the  entertainment  was  about 
to  begin. 

At  this  time  the  Emperor  took  a  fancy  to  Mme.  de 

X ,  and  whether  it  was  that  his  budding  passion  had 

inspired  him  with  a  wish  to  please,  or  that  his  satisfaction  at 
the  success  of  his  plans  kept  him  in  good  humor,  I  can  not 
say ;  certain  it  is,  however,  that  while  we  were  at  Fontaine- 
bleau  he  was  more  affable  and  approachable  than  usual.  Af- 
ter the  Pope  had  retired,  the  Emperor  remained  in  the  Em- 
press's drawing-room,  and  talked,  not  with  the  men,  but,  by 
preference,  with  the  women  who  were  there.  His  wife, 
keen  of  perception  where  anything  which  aroused  her  jeal- 
ousy was  in  question,  was  struck  by  this  departure  from  his 
ordinary  habits,  and  suspected  that  some  new  fancy  was  the 
cause  of  it.  She  could  not,  however,  discover  the  real  ob- 
ject of  his  thoughts,  because  he  very  adroitly  paid  marked 

attention  to  each  of  us  in  succession ;  and  Mme.  de  X , 

who  as  yet  conducted  herself  with  great  reserve,  did  not  seem 
to  perceive  that  she  was  the  particular  object  of  the  general 
gallantries  that  the  Emperor  affected  to  distribute  among  us. 
Some  of  those  present  believed  that  the  Marechale  "Ney  was 
about  to  receive  his  homage.  The  Marechale  is  the  daughter 
of  M.  Augue,  formerly  Keceiver-General  of  Finance,  and  her 
mother  was  one  of  the  Bedchamber  Women  to  Queen  Marie 
Antoinette.  She  was  educated  by  her  aunt,  Mme.  Campan, 
and  when  in  her  establishment  became  the  friend  and  com- 
panion of  Hortense  de  Beauharnais,  now  the  Princess  Louis. 
She  was  at  this  time  about  twenty-two  or  twenty-three  years 
old,  and  rather  pretty,  but  too  thin.  She  knew  very  little  of 
the  world,  was  excessively  shy,  and  had  not  the  slightest  de- 
sire to  attract  the  Emperor,  whom  she  regarded  with  extreme 
dread. 


RETURN  OF  TEE  COURT  TO  PARIS.  217 

During  our  sojourn  at  Fontainebleau,  a  decree  of  the  Sen- 
ate was  published  in  the  "  Moniteur."  It  was  to  the  effect 
that,  according  to  the  verification  of  the  registers  of  the  votes 
given  upon  the  question  of  the  Empire,  made  by  a  commis- 
sion of  the  Senate,  Bonaparte  and  his  family  were  declared 
to  be  called  to  the  throne  of  France.  The  general  total  of 
voters  amounted  to  3,574,898.  Of  these,  3,572,329  were  ayes, 
2,569  noes. 

The  Court  returned  to  Paris  on  Thursday,  the  29th  of 
November.  The  Emperor  and  the  Pope  traveled  in  the  same 
carriage,  and  his  Holiness  was  lodged  in  the  Pavilion  of 
Flora.  Certain  members  of  the  household  were  appointed 
to  attend  on  him. 

During  the  first  few  days  of  his  residence  in  Paris,  the 
Pope  was  not  treated  by  the  inhabitants  with  all  the  respect 
which  might  have  been  anticipated  A  crowd,  attracted  by 
curiosity,  thronged  his  path  when  he  visited  the  churches, 
and  assembled  under  his  balcony  when  he  appeared  there  to 
give  his  blessing.  By  degrees,  however,  the  description  of  the 
dignity  of  his  manners  given  by  those  who  had  access  to  him, 
several  noble  and  affecting  sayings  of  his  on  different  occa- 
sions, and  the  self-possession  which  he  maintained  in  a  position 
so  new  and  strange  to  the  head  of  Christendom,  produced  a 
marked  change  even  among  the  lower  classes  of  the  people. 

Every  morning  the  terrace  of  the  Tuileries  was  covered 
with  a  great  multitude,  calling  loudly  for  him,  and  kneeling 
to  receive  his  blessing.  The  people  were  admitted  to  the 
gallery  of  the  Louvre  at  certain  specified  times  during  the 
day,  and  then  the  Pope  would  walk  from  end  to  end  of  it 
and  bless  the  multitude.  Mothers  flocked  thither  with  their 
children,  and  were  received  with  special  kindness.  One  day 
an  individual  who  was  a  well-known  enemy  of  religion  was 
in  the  gallery  when  the  Pope  arrived,  and,  as  his  curiosity 
urged  him  to  stay,  he  held  himself  aloof,  as  though  to  avoid 
the  benediction.  The  Pope  drew  near  him,  divined  his  se- 
cret hostility,  and  said  to  him,  in  the  gentlest  tone  :  "  Why  do 


218  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

you  avoid  me,  sir  ?  Is  there  any  danger  in  an  old  man's 
blessing?" 

Yery  soon  all  Paris  resounded  with  praise  of  the  Pope, 
and  the  Emperor's  jealousy  was  excited.  He  made  certain 
arrangements  which  obliged  his  Holiness  to  deny  himself  to 
the  too  eager  entreaties  of  the  faithful ;  and  the  Pope,  who 
detected  the  Emperor's  uneasiness,  adopted  extreme  reserve, 
but  without  allowing  the  slightest  sign  of  human  pride  to 
appear  in  his  manner  or  conduct. 

Two  days  before  the  coronation,  M.  de  Re'musat,  who, 
in  addition  to  being  Grand  Chamberlain,  was  also  Keeper  of 
the  Wardrobe,  and  therefore  charged  with  all  the  details  of 
the  Imperial  costumes,  submitted  to  the  Empress  the  superb 
diadem  which  had  just  been  made  for  her.  He  found  her 
in  a  state  of  delight  and  satisfaction,  which  she  could  hardly 
conceal  from  general  notice.  Presently  she  took  my  hus- 
band apart,  and  confided  to  him  that,  on  the  morning  of  that 
same  day,  an  altar  had  been  erected  in  the  Emperor's  cabi- 
net, and  that  Cardinal  Fesch  had  performed  the  marriage 
ceremony  between  herself  and  Bonaparte,  in  the  presence 
of  two  aides-de-camp.  After  the  ceremony  she  had  pro- 
cured a  written  certificate  of  the  marriage  from  the  Cardinal. 
She  carefully  preserved  this  document,  and,  notwithstanding 
all  the  Emperor's  efforts  to  obtain  it  from  her,  she  never 
could  be  induced  to  part  with  it. 

It  has  since  been  said  that  any  religious  marriage  not 
witnessed  by  the  cure  of  the  parish  in  which  it  is  celebrated 
is  de  facto  null  and  void,  and  that  a  means  of  breaking  the 
marriage  was  purposely  reserved  by  this  expedient.  In  that 
case,  Cardinal  Fesch  must  have  been  a  consenting  party  to 
the  fraud ;  and  yet  his  subsequent  conduct  forbids  any  such 
supposition.  When  violent  quarrels  arose  on  the  subject  of 
the  divorce,  and  the  Empress  went  so  far  as  to  threaten  her 
husband  with  the  publication  of  the  certificate  in  her  posses- 
sion, Cardinal  Fesch  was  consulted  upon  the  point.  He 
repeatedly  affirmed  that  the  document  was  in  good  form, 


THE  CORONATION.  219 

and  that  his  conscience  obliged  him  to  declare  the  marriage 
so  validly  solemnized  that  it  could  not  be  broken  otherwise 
than  by  an  act  of  arbitrary  authority. 

After  the  divorce  the  Emperor  wanted  to  get  possession 
of  the  document  in  question ;  but  the  Cardinal  advised  the 
Empress  not  to  part  with  it.  It  is  a  remarkable  proof  of  the 
extent  to  which  suspicion  and  distrust  prevailed  among  all 
the  members  of  the  Bonaparte  family,  that  the  Empress, 
while  availing  herself  of  advice  that  coincided  with  her  own 
feelings,  told  me  she  sometimes  thought  the  Cardinal  gave 
her  that  advice  in  connivance  with  the  Emperor,  who  wanted 
to  drive  her  to  some  outbreak  which  would  give  him  an  ex- 
cuse for  banishing  her  from  France.  And  yet,  the  uncle 
and  nephew  had  quarreled,  at  that  very  time,  about  the 
Pope's  affairs. 

On  the  2d  of  December  the  coronation  took  place.  It 
would  be  difficult  to  describe  its  splendor  or  to  enter  into  the 
details  of  that  day.  The  weather  was  cold;  but  dry  and 
bright ;  the  streets  of  Paris  were  crowded  with  people  more 
curious  than  enthusiastic ;  the  guard  under  arms  presented  a 
fine  spectacle. 

The  Pope  preceded  the  Emperor  by  several  hours,  and 
waited  with  admirable  patience  for  the  long-delayed  arrival 
of  the  procession.  He  sat  upon  the  throne  erected  for  him 
in  the  church,  and  made  no  complaint  either  of  cold  or 
weariness.  The  Cathedral  of  Notre  Dame  was  decorated 
with  taste  and  magnificence.  At  the  far  end  was  a  splendid 
throne  for  the  Emperor,  on  which  he  was  to  appear  sur- 
rounded by  his  entire  Court.  Before  setting  out  for  Notre 
Dame,  we  were  admitted  to  the  apartment  of  the  Empress. 
Our  attire  was  very  brilliant,  but  it  paled  before  the  magnifi- 
cence of  the  costumes  of  the  Imperial  family.  The  Empress 
especially,  sparkling  with  diamonds,  and  wearing  her  hair  in 
countless  curls,  a  style  of  the  time  of  Louis  XVI.,  did  not 
look  more  than  twenty-five.*  She  wore  a  white  satin  gown, 

*  She  was  forty-one,  having  been  born  at  Martinique  on  the  23d  of  June,  1763. 


220  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

and  a  Court  mantle  of  the  same  material,  both  profusely 
embroidered  in  mingled  gold  and  silver.  Her  ornaments 
consisted  of  a  diadem,  a  necklace,  earrings,  and  a  girdle  of 
diamonds  of  immense  value ;  and  all  this  gorgeous  attire  was 
worn  with  her  customary  easy  grace.  Her  sisters-in-law  were 
also  adorned  with  a  vast  quantity  of  jewels.  The  Emperor 
inspected  each  of  us  in  our  turn,  smiling  at  this  luxury,  which 
was,  like  all  the  rest,  a  sudden  creation  of  his  sovereign  will. 

His  own  costume  was  brilliant.  He  was  to  assume  the 
Imperial  robes  at  Notre  Dame,  but  for  the  present  he  wore 
a  French  coat  of  red  velvet  embroidered  in  gold,  a  white 
sash,  a  short  cloak  sewn  with  bees,  a  plumed  hat  turned  up 
in  front  with  a  diamond  buckle,  and  the  collar  of  the  Legion 
of  Honor  in  diamonds.  This  superb  dress  became  him  well. 
The  whole  Court  wore  velvet  cloaks  embroidered  in  gold. 
It  must  be  acknowledged  that  we  paraded  ourselves  a  little 
for  our  mutual  amusement;  but  the  spectacle  was  really 
beautiful. 

The  Emperor  got  into  his  carriage — it  had  seven  glasses, 
and  was  gorgeously  gilded — with  his  wife  and  his  two  broth- 
ers, Joseph  and  Louis.  Then  we  all  took  our  appointed 
places  in  the  carriages  which  were  to  follow,  and  the  splen- 
did cortege  proceeded  at  a  foot-pace  to  Notre  Dame.  There 
was  no  lack  of  shouting  on  our  way ;  and,  although  the  accla- 
mations of  the  people  had  not  that  ring  of  enthusiasm  which 
a  sovereign  jealous  of  his  people's  love  longs  to  recognize, 
they  sufficed  to  gratify  the  vanity  of  a  haughty  master,  but 
one  who  was  not  sensitive. 

On  his  arrival  at  Notre  Dame,  the  Emperor  entered  the 
archiepiscopal  palace,  and  there  assumed  his  robes  of  state. 
They  seemed  almost  to  crush  him ;  his  slight  frame  collapsed 
under  the  enormous  mantle  of  ermine.  A  simple  laurel- 
wreath  encircled  his  head ;  he  looked  like  an  antique  medal- 
lion, but  he  was  extremely  pale,  and  genuinely  affected. 
The  expression  of  his  countenance  was  stern  and  somewhat 
distressed. 


AN  IMPRESSIVE  CEREMONY.  221 

The  ceremony  was  grand  and  impressive.  A  general 
movement  of  admiration  was  noticeable  at  the  moment 
when  the  Empress  was  crowned.  She  was  so  unaffected, 
so  graceful,  as  she  advanced  toward  the  altar,  she  knelt 
down  with  such  simple  elegance,  that  all  eyes  were  de- 
lighted with  the  picture  she  presented.  When  she  had  to 
walk  from  the  altar  to  the  throne,  there  was  a  slight  alter- 
cation with  her  sisters-in-law,  who  carried  her  mantle  with 
such  an  ill  grace  that  I  observed  at  one  moment  the  new- 
made  Empress  could  not  advance  a  step.  The  Emperor 
perceived  this,  and  spoke  a  few  sharp  short  words  to  his 
sisters,  which  speedily  brought  them  to  reason. 

During  the  ceremony,  the  Pope  bore  an  air  of  resigna- 
tion of  a  noble  sort,  the  result  of  his  own  will,  and  for  a 
purpose  of  great  utility.  It  was  between  two  and  three 
o'clock  when  the  cortege  left  Notre  Dame,  and  we  did  not 
reach  the  Tuileries  until  the  short  December  day  had  closed 
in.  We  were  lighted  by  the  general  illuminations,  and  a 
number  of  torches  were  carried  along  the  line  of  vehicles. 
We  dined  at  the  chateau,  with  the  Grand  Marshal,  and 
after  dinner  the  Emperor  received  all  the  members  of  the 
Court  who  had  not  yet  retired.  He  was  in  high  spirits, 
and  delighted  with  the  ceremony ;  he  admired  us  all,  jested 
about  the  effect  of  finery  on  women,  and  said  to  us,  laugh- 
ingly, "  You  owe  it  to  me,  mesdames,  that  you  are  so  charm- 
ing !  "  He  had  not  allowed  the  Empress  to  take  off  her 
crown,  although  she  had  dined  tete-a-tete  with  him,  and  he 
complimented  her  on  the  grace  with  which  she  wore  it.  At 
length  he  dismissed  us. 

Innumerable  fetes  and  rejoicings  took  place  during  the 
ensuing  month.  On  the  5th  of  December  the  Emperor 
went  to  the  Champ  de  Mars  with  the  same  state  as  on  the 
coronation  day,  and  distributed  eagles  to  a  number  of  regi- 
ments. The  enthusiasm  of  the  soldiers  far  surpassed  that 
of  the  people;  but  the  bad  weather  spoiled  the  effect  of 
this  second  great  day.  It  rained  in  torrents,  but  neverthe- 


222  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUS AT. 

less  an  immense  multitude  thronged  the  Champ  de  Mars. 
M.  Maret  devoted  the  following  flowery  passage  in  the 
"  Moniteur "  to  the  rain  of  the  5th  of  December :  "  Al- 
though the  situation  of  the  spectators  was  distressing,  there 
was  not  one  among  them  who  did  not  find  ample  com- 
pensation in  the  sentiment  which  induced  him  to  remain 
in  his  place,  and  in  the  utterance  of  aspirations  (ywux\ 
to  which  his  acclamations  bore  testimony." 

A  common  and  absurd  form  of  flattery,  and  one  which 
has  been  resorted  to  in  every  age,  is  the  making  believe  that, 
because  a  king  has  need  of  sunshine,  he  can  secure  its  pres- 
ence. I  remember  when  it  was  a  current  saying  at  the  Tui- 
leries  that  the  Emperor  had  only  to  fix  a  certain  day  for  a 
review  or  a  hunting-party,  and  the  sky  could  not  fail  to  be 
cloudless.  Whenever  it  was  so,  the  fact  was  eagerly  re- 
marked ;  but  nothing  was  said  about  the  days  that  were  dull 
01;  rainy.  A  similar  device  was  adopted  in  the  time  of  Louis 
XIY.  It  was  not,  indeed,  possible  to  say  that  it  did  not 
rain  during  the  distribution  of  the  eagles  at  the  Champ  de 
Mars,  but  I  met  many  people  who  gravely  assured  me  that 
the  rain  did  not  wet  them. 

A  spacious  platform  had  been  constructed  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  Imperial  family  and  the  Court;  on  this 
the  throne,  protected  as  much  as  possible  from  the  rain, 
was  placed.  The  canvas  and  hangings  were  speedily  wet 
through ;  the  Empress  was  obliged  to  withdraw,  with  her 
daughter — who  was  out  for  the  first  time  after  the  birth  of 
her  second  child — and  her  sisters-in-law,  excepting  Mme. 
Murat,  who  continued  to  brave  the  weather  although  she 
was  lightly  dressed.  She  was  training  herself,  as  she  said 
laughingly,  "to  endure  the  inevitable  constraints  of  roy- 
alty." 

On  that  day  a  sumptuous  banquet  was  given  at  the  Tui- 
leries.  A  table  was  laid  in  the  Gallery  of  Diana,  beneath  a 
magnificent  canopy,  for  the  Pope,  the  Emperor,  the  Empress, 
and  the  first  Arch-Chancellor  of  the  German  Empire.  The 


PLAY  AT  THE  EMPERORS  COURT.  223 

Pope  sat  on  the  left  of  the  Empress,  and  the  Emperor  on  her 
right.  They  were  waited  on  by  the  great  officers  of  the 
household.  Lower  down,  there  was  a  table  for  the  Princes, 
among  whom  was  the  Hereditary  Prince  of  Baden ;  a  table 
for  the  Ministers ;  one  for  the  ladies  and  gentlemen  of  the 
Imperial  household — all  served  with  the  utmost  luxury. 
Some  fine  music  was  performed  during  the  repast.  Then 
came  a  largely  attended  reception,  at  which  the  Pope  was 
present ;  and  a  ballet,  performed  by  dancers  from  the  Opera, 
in  the  great  drawing-room.  The  Pope  withdrew  before  the 
ballet.  The  evening  concluded  with  cards,  and  the  Emperor 
gave  the  signal  for  departure  by  retiring. 

At  the  Emperor's  Court,  play  merely  formed  a  portion  of 
the  ceremonial.  He  never  allowed  money  to  be  staked,  and 
the  games  were  whist  and  loto.  We  used  to  make  up  the 
tables  just  for  something  to  do,  and  generally  talked,  while 
we  held  our  cards  without  looking  at  them.  The  Empress 
was  fond  of  playing  cards,  even  without  money,  and  played 
whist  in  real  earnest.  Her  card-table  and  that  of  the  Prin- 
cesses were  placed  in  the  room  called  the  Emperor's  cabinet, 
at  the  entrance  of  the  Gallery  of  Diana.  She  played  with 
the  greatest  personages  present,  foreigners,  ambassadors,  or 
Frenchmen.  The  two  ladies-in-waiting  on  duty  for  the  week 
occupied  seats  behind  her;  a  chamberlain  stood  near  her 
chair.  While  she  was  playing,  all  who  were  in  the  rooms 
came,  one  after  the  other,  to  make  their  bows  and  courtesies 
to  her.  Bonaparte's  brothers  and  sisters  also  played,  and  sent 
invitations  to  join  their  card-tables,  by  their  respective  cham- 
berlains, to  various  persons.  His  mother,  who  had  been 
given  a  house  and  the  title  of  Princess,  but  who  was  always 
called  Madame  Mere,  did  the  same.  The  Emperor  walked 
about  everywhere,  preceded  by  chamberlains  who  announced 
his  presence.  On  his  approach  every  voice  was  hushed ;  no 
one  left  his  place ;  the  ladies  stood  up,  waiting  for  the  insig- 
nificant, and  frequently  ungracious,  remarks  which  he  would 
address  to  them.  He  never  remembered  a  name,  and  his 
19 


224:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

first  question  almost  invariably  was,  "  And  what  do  you  call 
yourself  ? "  There  was  not  a  woman  present  on  those  occasions 
who  did  not  rejoice  when  he  moved  away  from  her  vicinity. 

This  reminds  me  of  an  anecdote  about  Gretry.  As  a 
member  of  the  Institute  he  frequently  attended  the  Sunday 
receptions,  and  it  happened  several  times  that  the  Emperor, 
who  had  come  to  recognize  his  face,  approached  him  almost 
mechanically  and  asked  him  his  name.  One  day  Gretry, 
who  was  tired  of  this  perpetual  question,  and  perhaps  a  little 
annoyed  at  not  having  produced  a  more  lasting  impression, 
answered  to  the  Emperor's  rudely  uttered  "  And  you  !  who 
are  you?"  in  a  sharp,  impatient  tone,  "Sire,  I  am  still 
Gretry."  Ever  afterward  the  Emperor  recognized  him  per- 
fectly. The  Empress,  on  the  contrary,  had  an  accurate  mem- 
ory for  names,  and  also  for  the  smallest  particulars  concern- 
ing each  individual. 

For  a  long  time  the  routine  of  the  Court  receptions  con- 
tinued to  be  what  I  have  described.  Afterward,  concerts, 
ballets,  and  even  plays,  were  added  to  the  list  of  amuse- 
ments ;  but  I  shall  refer  to  this  subject  in  due  order  of  time. 
The  Emperor  desired  that  special  places  should  be  assigned 
to  the  ladies-in-waiting,  and  these  small  privileges  excited 
small  jealousies  which  engendered  great  animosities,  after 
the  invariable  law  of  courts.  At  this  period  the  Emperor 
indulged  in  ceremonies  of  every  kind ;  he  liked  them,  espe- 
cially because  they  were  of  his  own  creation.  He  always 
spoiled  their  effect  to  some  extent  by  the  habitual  precipita- 
tion from  which  he  could  rarely  refrain,  and  by  the  appre- 
hension lest  all  should  not  be  exactly  as  he  wished,  with 
which  he  inspired  everybody.  On  one  occasion,  he  gave 
audience,  seated  on  his  throne  and  surrounded  by  the  great 
officers  of  the  household,  the  Marshals,  and  the  Senate,  to  all 
the  Prefects,  and  to  the  Presidents  of  the  electoral  colleges. 
He  then  granted  a  second  audience  to  the  former,  and 
strongly  urged  them  to  carry  out  the  conscription.  "  With- 
out that,"  said  the  Emperor  (and  these  words  were  inserted 


CHfiNIER'S  TRAGEDY.  225 

in  the  "  Moniteur "),  "  there  can  be  neither  national  power 
nor  national  independence."  No  doubt,  he  was  then  cher- 
ishing a  project  for  placing  the  crown  of  Italy  upon  his 
head,  and  felt  that  his  designs  must  lead  to  war ;  and,  be- 
sides, as  the  impossibility  of  an  invasion  of  England  had 
been  made  clear  to  him,  although  the  preparations  were  still 
carried  on,  the  necessity  for  employing  an  army  which  was 
becoming  a  burden  to  France  was  pressed  upon  his  atten- 
tion. In  the  midst  of  these  graver  subjects  of  anxiety,  he 
had  reason  to  be  provoked  with  the  Parisians.  He  had  be- 
spoken from  Chenier  a  tragedy  to  be  acted  on  the  occasion 
of  the  coronation.  The  poet  had  selected  Cyrus  for  his 
theme,  and  the  fifth  act  of  the  tragedy  (the  coronation  of  the 
hero  of  ancient  history)  represented  the  ceremony  of  Notre 
Dame  accurately  enough.  The  piece  was  a  poor  production, 
and  the  allusions  in  it  were  too  palpable,  too  evidently  writ- 
ten to  order.  The  Parisian  audience  hissed  the  tragedy 
from  first  to  last,  and  laughed  aloud  at  the  scene  of  the  en- 
thronement. The  Emperor  was  much  displeased ;  he  was  as 
angry  with  my  husband  as  if  M.  de  Remusat  had  been  re- 
sponsible to  him  for  the  approbation  of  the  public,  and  by 
the  revelation  of  this  weak  point  the  public  learned  to  avenge 
themselves  at  the  theatre  for  the  silence  BO  rigorously  im- 
posed upon  them  elsewhere. 

The  Senate  gave  a  magnificent  fete,  and  the  Corps  Legis- 
latif  followed  the  example.  On  the  16th  of  December  an 
entertainment  took  place,  by  which  the  city  of  Paris  incurred 
a  debt,  unpaid  for  many  years,  for  a  grand  public  feast,  fire- 
works, a  ball,  and  the  silver-gilt  toilet-services  presented  to 
the  Emperor  and  Empress.  Addresses  and  laudatory  in- 
scriptions abounded  in  all  directions.  The  flatteries  lavished 
upon  Louis  XIY.  during  his  reign  have  been  much  com- 
mented upon ;  I  am  sure,  if  they  were  all  put  together,  they 
would  not  amount  to  one  tenth  of  those  which  were  be- 
stowed upon  Bonaparte.  Some  years  later,  at  another  fete 
given  by  the  city  of  Paris  to  the  Emperor,  the  repertory  of 


226  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

inscriptions  being  exhausted,  a  brilliant  device  was  resorted 
to.  Over  the  throne  which  he  was  to  occupy  were  placed 
the  following  words  from  the  Holy  Scriptures,  in  letters  of 
gold :  "  I  am  that  I  am."  And  no  one  seemed  to  be  scan- 
dalized ! 

France  was  given  up  at  this  time  to  fetes  and  merry- 
making. Medals  were  struck  and  distributed  profusely. 
The  Marshals  gave  a  great  ball  in  the  Opera  House,  at  a  cost 
of  ten  thousand  francs  to  each.  The  pit  was  boarded  over, 
on  a  level  with  the  stage ;  the  boxes  were  festooned  with 
silver  gauze,  brilliantly  lighted,  and  filled  with  ladies  in  full 
dress.  The  Imperial  family  were  seated  apart  on  an  es- 
trade,  and  the  company  danced  in  the  vast  inclosure.  Flow- 
ers and  diamonds  in  profusion,  splendid  dresses,  and  the 
magnificence  of  the  Court  made  this  a  most  brilliant  enter- 
tainment. We  were  all  put  to  great  expense  on  these  occa- 
sions. A  sum  of  ten  thousand  francs  was  allowed  to  the 
ladies-in-waiting  as  compensation  for  their  expenditure,  but 
it  was  not  nearly  sufficient.  The  cost  of  the  coronation 
amounted  to  four  millions  of  francs. 

The  princes  and  distinguished  foreigners  staying  in  Paris 
paid  an  assiduous  court  to  our  sovereign,  and  the  Emperor 
did  the  honors  of  Paris  with  a  good  grace.  Prince  Louis  of 
Baden  was  then  very  young,  and  rather  shy ;  he  kept  him- 
self in  the  background.  The  Prince  Primate,  who  was  over 
sixty,  was  amiable,  lively,  and  garrulous.  He  was  well  ac- 
quainted with  France,  and  with  Paris,  where  he  had  lived  in 
his  youth ;  he  was  fond  of  literature,  and  friendly  with  the 
former  Academicians,  who  were  admitted,  with  a  few  other 
persons,  to  the  smaller  receptions  held  by  the  Empress. 
During  this  winter  about  fifty  ladies  and  a  number  of  gen- 
tlemen used  to  be  invited,  once  or  twice  a  week,  to  sup  at 
the  Tuileries.  Eight  o'clock  was  the  hour  named,  and  full 
dress,  but  not  Court  dress,  was  worn.  We  played  at  cards 
in  the  drawing-room  on  the  ground-floor,  which  is  now 
Madame's  drawing-room.  On  Bonaparte's  appearance  we 


THE  COURT  OF  THE  EMPRESS.  227 

used  to  pass  into  a  music-room,  where  a  musical  performance 
by  Italian  singers  occupied  half  an  hour ;  then  we  returned 
to  the  drawing-room,  and  resumed  our  cards.  The  Emperor 
would  move  about,  either  playing  or  talking.  A  sumptuous 
and  elegant  supper  was  served  at  eleven  o'clock,  the  ladies 
only  being  seated.  Bonaparte's  arm-chair  would  remain  un- 
occupied ;  he  would  saunter  round  the  table,  but  eat  nothing. 
When  supper  was  over,  he  would  take  his  departure.  The 
princes  and  princesses,  the  great  officers  of  the  Empire,  two 
or  three  ministers,  a  few  marshals,  some  generals,  senators, 
State  councilors,  and  their  wives,  were  always  invited  to 
these  small  parties.  There  was  great  rivalry  in  dress.  The 
Empress,  as  well  as  her  sisters-in-law,  always  appeared  in 
something  new,  with  quantities  of  pearls  and  precious  stones. 
She  was  the  possessor  of  pearls  worth  a  million  of  francs. 
At  that  time  stuffs  shot  with  gold  or  silver  began  to  be  worn. 
During  the  winter  turbans  became  the  fashion  at  court ;  they 
were  made  either  of  white  or  colored  muslin,  spotted  with 
gold,  or  of  a  brilliant  Turkish  material.  By  degrees  our  gar- 
ments assumed  an  Eastern  shape :  over  our  richly  embroidered 
muslin  gowns  we  used  to  wear  short  dresses  of  some  colored 
fabric,  open  in  front,  and  our  arms,  shoulders,  and  bosoms 
uncovered. 

The  Emperor,  who,  as  I  shall  presently  relate,  was  be- 
coming more  and  more  deeply  in  love,  sought  to  disguise 
the  fact  by  paying  attentions  to  all  the  ladies,  and  seemed  at 
his  ease  only  when  surrounded  by  them.  The  gentlemen 
would  then  become  aware  that  their  presence  embarrassed 
him,  and  they  would  retire  to  an  adjoining  room.  The  scene 
was  then  not  unlike  a  harem,  as  I  remarked  one  evening  to 
Bonaparte.  He  was  in  a  good  humor,  and  laughed ;  but  my 
jest  was  far  from  pleasing  to  the  Empress. 

The  Pope,  who  passed  his  evenings  in  retirement,  visited 
the  churches,  hospitals,  and  public  institutions  in  the  morn- 
ing. He  officiated  on  one  occasion  at  Notre  Dame,  and  a 
great  crowd  was  admitted  to  kiss  his  feet.  He  visited  Yer- 


228  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

sallies  and  the  suburbs  of  Paris,  and  was  received  with  such 
profound  respect  at  the  Invalides  that  the  Emperor  grew 
uneasy.  And  yet  I  heard  that,  while  his  Holiness  was  most 
anxious  to  return  to  Rome,  the  Emperor  still  detained  him. 
I  have  never  been  able  to  discover  his  motive. 

The  Pope  was  always  dressed  in  white :  having  been  a 
monk,  he  wore  a  woolen  habit,  and  over  it  a  sort  of  surplice 
of  cambric  trimmed  with  lace,  which  had  a  curious  effect. 
His  calotte,  or  skull-cap,  was  of  white  woolen  stuff. 

At  the  end  of  December  the  Corps  Legislatif  was  opened 
in  state ;  labored  speeches  upon  the  importance  and  the  hap- 
piness of  the  great  event  which  had  just  taken  place  were 
delivered,  and  a  report,  not  only  flourishing  but  als*o  true,  on 
the  prosperous  condition  of  France,  was  presented. 

Meanwhile,  applications  for  places  at  the  new  Court  were 
numerous,  and  the  Emperor  acceded  to  some  of  them.  He 
also  named  senators  from  among  the  presidents  of  the  elec- 
toral colleges.  Marmont  was  made  colonel-general  of  the 
Mounted  Chasseurs ;  and  the  Grand  Cordon  of  the  Legion  of 
Honor  was  bestowed  on  Cambaceres,  Lebrun,  the  Marshals, 
Cardinal  Fesch,  MM.  Duroc,  De  Caulaincourt,  De  Talley- 
rand, De  Segur,  and  also  on  several  Ministers,  the  Chief 
Judge,  and  on  MM.  Gaudin  and  Portalis,  Ministers  of  Pub- 
lic Worship.  These  appointments  and  favors  kept  every 
one  in  a  state  of  expectation. 

Thenceforth  the  impulse  was  given ;  people  became  ac- 
customed to  wishing,  to  waiting,  to  seeing  daily  some  new 
thing.  Each  day  would  bring  forth  some  little  circumstance, 
unexpected  in  itself,  but  anticipated  ;  for  we  had  acquired  a 
habit  of  always  being  on  the  lookout  for  something.  After- 
ward the  Emperor  extended  to  the  entire  nation,  to  the  whole 
of  Europe,  the  system  of  continually  exciting  ambition,  cu- 
riosity, and  hope  :  this  was  not  the  least  ingenious  secret  of 
his  government. 


CHAPTER  XL 

(1807.) 

The  Emperor  in  Love — Mme.  de  X Mme.  de  Damas — The  Empress  confides 

in  me — Palace  Intrigues — Murat  is  raised  to  the  Rank  of  Prince. 

THE  Empress  could  not  forbear  from  occasionally  com- 
plaining, in  private,  that  her  son  had  no  share  in  the  promo- 
tions which  were  made  daily ;  but  she  had  the  good  sense  to 
conceal  her  dissatisfaction,  and  Eugene  himself  maintained 
an  easy  attitude,  which  was  highly  honorable  to  him,  and  in 
marked  contrast  with  the  jealous  impatience  of  Murat.  Mme. 
Murat  was  continually  importuning  the  Emperor  to  raise  her 
husband  to  a  rank  which  would  place  him  above  the  Mar- 
shals, among  whom  it  annoyed  him  to  be  included.  During 
the  winter  both  the  husband  and  wife  contrived  to  profit  by 
the  weakness  of  the  Emperor,  and  earned  a  claim  to  his  favor 
by  making  themselves  useful  in  his  new  love  affair,  as  we 
shall  presently  see. 

I  have  already  said  that  Eugene  was  captivated  by  Mme. 
de  X .  This  lady,  who  was  then  twenty-four  or  twenty- 
five  years  of  age,  was  of  fair  hair  and  complexion ;  her  blue 
eyes  could  wear  any  expression  she  chose,  except  indeed  that 
of  frankness ;  her  disposition  was  habitually  deceitful.  Her 
nose  was  aquiline  and  rather  long,  her  mouth  was  lovely,  and 
her  teeth,  which  she  frequently  displayed,  were  beautiful. 
She  was  of  middle  height,  with  an  elegant  but  too  slender 
figure ;  she  had  small  feet,  and  danced  to  perfection.  She 
had  no  remarkable  ability,  but  was  not  wanting  in  clever- 


230  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

ness ;  her  manners  were  quiet  and  cold.  It  was  difficult  to 
excite  her  feelings,  still  more  difficult  to  hurt  them. 

The  Empress  had  at  first  treated  her  with  marked  dis- 
tinction. She  praised  her  beauty,  approved  of  her  style  of 
dress,  and  made  more  of  her  than  of  others,  for  the  sake  of 
her  son,  Prince  Eugene.  This,  perhaps,  led  in  the  first  in- 
stance to  the  Emperor's  taking  notice  of  her.  He  began  to 
pay  her  attention  during  the  sojourn  of  the  Court  at  Fon- 
tainebleau. 

Mme.  Murat,  who  was  the  first  to  discern  her  brother's 
inclination,  tried  to  insinuate  herself  into  the  confidence  of 
the  lady,  and  succeeded  so  far  as  to  set  her  on  her  guard 
against  the  keen  eyes  of  the  Empress.  Murat,  in  accordance, 
I  believe,  with  some  private  arrangement,  pretended  to  be 

an  admirer  of  Mme.  de  X ,  and  thus  for  a  time  threw 

the  Court  off  the  scent. 

The  Empress,  who  was  well  aware  of  the  new  passion  of 
the  Emperor,  but  could  not  discover  its  object,  at  first  sus- 
pected the  Marechale  Ney,  to  whom  he  was  in  the  habit  of 
talking  a  good  deal ;  and  for  a  few  days  that  poor  lady  was 
closely  watched.  As  usual,  the  Empress  confided  her  jealous 
suspicions  to  me,  but  I  saw  nothing  as  yet  to  justify  them. 

The  Empress  complained  to  Mme.  Louis  of  what  she 
called  the  perfidy  of  Mme.  Ney.  The  latter  was  questioned, 
and,  after  having  declared  that  her  own  feeling  toward  the 
Emperor  was  simply  fear,  she  admitted  that  he  had  some- 
times appeared  to  pay  her  attention,  and  that  Mme.  de  X 

had  congratulated  her  on  the  grand  conquest  she  was  about 
to  make.  This  was  a  flash  of  light  to  the  Empress.  She  at 
once  discovered  the  truth,  and  saw  that  Murat  was  feigning 
love  for  the  lady  only  that  he  might  be  the  bearer  of  declara- 
tions from  the  Emperor. 

In  Duroc's  deference  toward  Mme.  de  X she  also 

discerned  a  proof  of  his  master's  sentiments,  and  in  the  con- 
duct of  Mme.  Murat  a  deeply  laid  scheme  against  her  own 
peace  of  mind.  The  Emperor  began  to  pass  more  time  in 


MME.  DE  X— .  231 

his  wife's  apartments.  Nearly  every  evening  he  would  come 
down,  and  his  looks  and  words  betrayed  the  object  of  his 
preference.  If  Josephine  went  privately  to  the  theatre — for 
the  Emperor  did  not  like  her  to  appear  in  public  without 
him — he  would  join  her  party  unexpectedly;  and  day  by 
day  he  became  more  engrossed  and  less  capable  of  self-con- 
trol. Mme.  de  X maintained  an  appearance  of  indiffer- 
ence, but  she  made  use  of  every  art  of  feminine  coquetry. 
Her  dress  became  more  and  more  elegant,  her  smile  more 
subtle,  her  looks  more  full  of  meaning ;  and  it  was  soon  easy 
enough  to  guess  what  was  going  on.  The  Empress  suspected 
that  Mme.  Murat  connived  at  secret  interviews  in  her  own 
house,  and  she  afterward  became  certain  of  the  fact.  Then/ 
according  to  her  custom,  she  burst  into  tears  and  reproaches, 
and  once  more  I  found  myself  obliged  to  listen  to  confidences 
which  were  dangerous  to  receive,  and  to  give  advice  which 
was  never  heeded. 

The  Empress  attempted  expostulations,  but  they  were 
very  badly  taken.  Her  husband  lost  his  temper,  reproached 
her  with  opposing  his  pleasures,  and  ordered  her  to  be  silent ; 
and  while  she,  abandoned  to  her  grief,  was  sad  and  downcast 
in  public,  he,  more  gay,  free,  and  animated  than  we  had  yet 
seen  him,  paid  attention  to  us  all,  and  lavished  rough  com- 
pliments on  us.  On  the  occasions  of  the  Empress's  recep- 
tions, of  which  I  have  already  spoken,  he  looked  really  like 
a  Sultan.  He  would  sit  down  to  a  card-table,  often  selecting 

his  sister  Caroline,  Mme.  de  X ,  and  myself  to  make  up 

his  game ;  and,  scarcely  noticing  his  cards,  he  would  start 
some  sentimental  discussion  in  his  own  style,  with  more  wit 
than  sentiment,  occasionally  with  doubtful  taste,  but  with  a 

great  deal  of  animation.    On  these  occasions  Mme.  de  X 

was  very  reserved,  and,  being  probably  afraid  lest  I  might 
make  some  discoveries,  would  answer  in  monosyllables  only. 

Mme.  Murat  took  but  slight  interest  in  these  conversa- 
tions ;  she  always  went  straight  to  her  point,  and  cared  little 
for  detail.  As  for  me,  I  was  amused  by  them,  and  I  could 


232  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

take  my  part  with  a  liberty  of  spirit  not  possessed  by  the 
other  three,  who  were  all  more  or  less  preoccupied.  Some- 
times, without  naming  any  one,  Bonaparte  would  commence 
.  a  dissertation  on  jealousy,  and  then  it  was  easy  to  see  that 
he  applied  it  to  his  wife.  I  understood  him,  and  defended 
her  gayly,  as  well  as  I  could,  without  plainly  indicating  her ; 

and  I  could  see  that  Mme.  de  X and  Mme.  Murat  gave 

me  no  thanks  for  that. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  would  keep  a  watch  on  us  during  these 
conversations,  which  always  made  her  uneasy,  from  the 
other  end  of  the  room,  where  she  was  playing  at  cards.  Al- 
though she  had  reason  to  know  she  might  depend  on  me, 
"yet,  as  she  was  naturally  suspicious,  she  sometimes  feared 
that  I  would  sacrifice  her  to  the  desire  of  pleasing  the  Em- 
peror, and  she  was  also  vexed  with  me  because  I  would  not 
tax  him  with  his  conduct. 

She  would  sometimes  ask  me  to  go  to  him  and  tell  him 
of  the  harm  which,  as  she  said,  this  new  entanglement  was 
doing  him  in  the  eyes  of  the  world ;  again,  she  wanted  me 

to  contrive  that  Mme.  de  X should  be  watched  in  her 

own  house,  whither  she  knew  Bonaparte  sometimes  went  of 
an  evening ;  or  else  she  would  make  me  write,  in  her  pres- 
ence, anonymous  letters  full  of  reproaches.  These  I  wrote 
in  order  to  satisfy  her,  and  to  prevent  her  from  getting  other 
persons  to  write  them ;  but  I  carefully  burned  them  after- 
ward, although  I  assured  her  that  I  had  sent  them. 

Servants  whom  she  could  trust  were  employed  to  dis- 
cover the  proofs  she  sought  for.  The  employees  of  her 
favorite  tradespeople  were  taken  into  her  confidence,  and  I 
suffered  the  more  from  her  imprudent  conduct,  when  I 
learned  shortly  afterward  that  Mme.  Murat  put  down  all  the 
discoveries  made  by  the  Empress  to  my  account,  and  accused 
me  of  a  mean  espionage  of  which  I  was  incapable. 

The  Empress  was  the  more  distressed  because  her  son 

was  profoundly  grieved  by  this  affair.  Mme.  de  X , 

who,  either  from  coquetry,  inclination,  or  vanity,  had  at  first 


MME.  DE  X—.  233 

listened  favorably  to  him,  avoided  even  the  slightest  appear- 
ance of  friendship  with  him  since  her  new  and  more  brilliant 
conquest.  She  probably  boasted  to  the  Emperor  of  the  pas- 
sion with  which  she  had  inspired  Eugene ;  certain  it  is  that 
the  latter  was  treated  with  coldness  by  his  stepfather.  The 
Empress  showed  her  anger  at  this ;  the  Princess  Louis  was 
also  distressed,  but  she  concealed  her  feelings ;  Eugene  was 
sore  at  heart,  but  his  outward  composure  laid  him  little  open 
to  attack. 

In  all  this  the  undying  hatred  between  the  Bonapartes 
and  the  Beauharnais  was  displayed,  and  it  was  my  fate  to 
find  myself  entangled  in  it,  notwithstanding  all  my  modera- 
tion. I  have  discovered  by  experience  that  everything,  or 
nearly  everything,  depends  on  chance  at  Court.  Human 
prudence  is  not  a  sufficient  safeguard,  and  I  know  no  means 
of  escaping  from  misconstruction,  unless  the  sovereign  him- 
self be  incapable  of  suspicion.  Far  from  this,  however,  the 
Emperor  welcomed  all  gossip,  and  believed  everything  that 
was  ill-natured,  on  any  subject.  The  surest  way  to  please 
him  was  to  carry  every  rumor  to  him,  and  to  denounce 
everybody's  conduct ;  and  therefore  M.  de  Remusat,  who 
was  placed  so  near  him,  never  obtained  his  favor.  He  de- 
clined to  tread  such  a  path  to  success,  although  it  was  fre- 
quently pointed  out  to  him  by  Duroc. 

One  evening  the  Emperor,  who  was  quite  out  of  patience, 
owing  to  a  scene  with  his  wife,  in  which,  driven  to  despera- 
tion, she  had  declared  she  would  forbid  the  entry  of  her 

apartments  to  Mme.  de  X ,  addressed  himself  to  M.  de 

Remusat,  and  complained  that  I  did  not  use  my  influence 
over  her  to  dissuade  her  from  acts  of  imprudence.  He  con- 
cluded by  telling  him  that  he  wished  to  speak  to  me  in  pri- 
vate, and  that  I  was  to  ask  for  an  audience.  M.  de  Kemusat 
conveyed  this  order  to  me,  and  accordingly  on  the  following 
day  I  asked  for  an  audience,  which  was  fixed  for  the  next 
morning. 

A  hunting-party  had  been  arranged  for  that  day.     The 


234:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

Empress  started  first  with  the  foreign  princes ;  she  was  to 
wait  for  the  Emperor  in  the  Bois  de  Boulogne.  I  arrived 
just  as  the  Emperor  was  entering  his  carriage ;  his  suite  was 
assembled  round  him.  He  returned  to  his  cabinet  in  order 
to  receive  me,  to  the  great  astonishment  of  the  Court,  to 
whom  the  merest  trifle  was  an  event. 

He  began  by  complaining  bitterly  of  the  discussions  in 
his  household,  and  launched  out  into  invectives  against  wo- 
men in  general,  and  his  own  wife  in  particular.  He  re- 
proached me  with  assisting  her  spies,  and  accused  me  of 
many  actions  of  which  I  knew  nothing  whatever,  but  which 
had  been  reported  to  him.  I  recognized  in  all  he  said  the 
ill  offices  of  Mme.  Murat,  and,  what  hurt  me  more,  I  per- 
ceived that  in  several  instances  the  Empress  had  used  my 
name,  and  had  attributed  to  me  her  own  words  or  thoughts, 
in  order  to  strengthen  her  case.  This,  together  with  the 
Emperor's  angry  words,  distressed  me,  and  tears  rose  to 
my  eyes.  The  Emperor  noticed  them,  and  rudely  rebuked 
my  emotion  with  a  saying  which  he  frequently  used,  and 
which  I  have  already  quoted :  "  Women  have  always  two 
ways  of  producing  an  effect — paint  and  tears."  Just  then 
these  words,  uttered  in  an  ironical  tone  and  with  the  inten- 
tion of  disconcerting  me,  had  the  opposite  effect ;  they  an- 
gered me,  and  gave  me  courage  to  answer :  "  No,  Sire ;  but 
when  I  am  unjustly  accused,  I  can  not  but  weep  tears  of  in- 
dignation." 

I  must  render  this  testimony  to  the  Emperor :  he  was 
seldom  hard  upon  any  one  who  displayed  firmness ;  either 
because,  meeting  with  it  seldom,  he  was  unprepared  for  it, 
or  because  his  natural  sense  of  justice  responded  to  a  feeling 
justly  entertained. 

He  was  not  displeased  with  me.  "  Since  you  do  not  ap- 
prove," he  said,  "  of  the  watch  set  over  me  by  the  Empress, 
how  is  it  your  influence  is  not  sufficient  to  deter  her  ?  She 
humiliates  both  herself  and  me  by  surrounding  me  with 
spies;  she  only  furnishes  weapons  to  her  enemies.  Since 


MMR  DE  X—  235 

you  are  in  her  confidence,  you  must  answer  for  her,  and  I 
shall  hold  you  responsible  for  all  her  faults."  He  smiled 
slightly  as  he  spoke  these  words.  Then  I  represented  to 
him  that  I  was  tenderly  attached  to  the  Empress ;  that  I 
was  incapable  of  advising  her  to  an  improper  course  of  ac- 
tion ;  but  that  no  one  could  gain  much  influence  over  a  per- 
son of  so  passionate  a  nature.  I  told  him  that  he  showed 
no  tact  in  dealing  with  her,  and  that,  whether  he  was  right- 
ly or  wrongly  suspected,  he  was  harsh  and  treated  her  too 
roughly.  I  durst  not  blame  the  Empress  for  that  which  was 
really  blameworthy  in  her  conduct,  for  I  knew  he  would  not 
fail  to  repeat  my  words  to  his  wife.  I  ended  by  telling  him 
that  I  should  keep  away  from  the  palace  for  some  time,  and 
that  he  would  see  whether  things  went  on  any  better  in  con- 
sequence. 

He  then  said  that  he  was  not,  and  could  not  be,  in  love ; 
that  he  thought  no  more  of  Mme.  de  X than  of  any- 
body else ;  that  love  was  for  men  of  a  different  disposition 
from  his  own ;  that  he  was  altogether  absorbed  in  politics ; 
that  he  would  have  no  women  ruling  in  his  Court ;  that  they 
had  injured  Henry  IY.  and  Louis  XIV. ;  that  his  own  busi- 
ness was  a  much  more  serious  one  than  that  of  those  kings, 
and  that  Frenchmen  had  become  too  grave  to  pardon  their 
sovereign  for  recognized  liaisons  and  official  mistresses.  He 
spoke  of  his  wife's  past  conduct,  adding  that  she  had  not  the 
right  to  be  severe.  I  ventured  to  check  him  on  this  subject, 
and  he  was  not  angry  with  me.  Finally,  he  questioned  me 
as  to  the  individuals  who  were  employed  as  spies  by  the  Em- 
press. I  could  only  answer  that  I  knew  none  of  them.  Then 
he  reproached  me  with  want  of  attachment  to  himself.  I 
maintained  that  I  was  more  sincerely  devoted  than  those  who 
carried  worthless  gossip  to  him.  This  conversation  ended 
better  than  it  had  begun ;  I  could  perceive  that  I  had  made 
a  favorable  impression. 

.  This  interview  had  lasted  a  long  time ;  and  the  Empress, 
who  grew  tired  of  waiting  in  the  Bois  de  Boulogne,  had  sent 


236  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

a  mounted  servant  to  discover  what  was  detaining  her  hus- 
band. She  was  informed  that  he  was  alone  with  me.  Her 
uneasiness  became  very  great ;  she  returned  to  the  Tuileries, 
and,  finding  I  was  no  longer  there,  she  sent  Mme.  de  Tal- 
houet  to  m y  house  to  learn  all  that  had  taken  place.  In 
obedience  to  the  Emperor's  commands,  I  replied  that  the 
conversation  had  been  restricted  to  certain  matters  relative 
to  M.  de  Kemusat. 

In  the  evening  there  was  a  dance  at  General  Savary's,  at 
which  the  Emperor  had  promised  to  be  present.  During 
the  winter  he  took  every  opportunity  of  appearing  in  so- 
ciety ;  he  was  in  good  spirits,  and  would  even  dance,  rather 
awkwardly.  I  arrived  at  Mme.  Savary's  before  the  Court 
party.  The  Grand  Marshal  (Duroc)  came  forward  to  meet 
me,  and  offered  his  arm  to  conduct  me  to  my  place  ;  and  our 
host  was  full  of  attentions.  My  long  audience  of  that  morn- 
ing had  given  rise  to  conjectures ;  I  was  treated  with  re- 
spect, as  though  I  were  in  high  favor,  or  had  received  confi- 
dential communications.  I  could  not  help  smiling  at  the 
simple  cunning  of  these  courtiers. 

Presently  the  Emperor  and  Empress  arrived.  In  making 
his  progress  round  the  room,  Bonaparte  stopped  and  spoke 
to  me  in  a  friendly  manner.  The  Empress  was  watching  us, 
full  of  anxiety.  Mme.  Murat  looked  astonished  and  Mme. 

de  X nervous.  All  this  amused  me ;  I  did  not  foresee 

the  consequences.  The  next  day  the  Empress  pressed  me 
with  questions  which  I  took  care  not  to  answer ;  she  became 
offended,  and  declared  that  I  was  sacrificing  her  to  the  Em- 
peror, that  I  chose  the  safe  side,  and  that  I  no  more  than 
others  cared  for  her.  Her  reproaches  grieved  me  deeply. 

I  confided  all  my  troubles  to  my  dear  mother.  I  was  ac- 
quiring a  bitter  experience,  and  was  still  young  enough  to 
shed  tears  over  it.  My  mother  comforted  me,  and  advised 
me  to  hold  myself  a  little  aloof,  which  I  did ;  but  this  did 
not  help  me.  The  Emperor  obliged  me  to  speak  to  him, 
and,  when  he  reproached  his  wife  for  her  indiscreet  behavior, 


MME.  DE  DAMAS.  237 

pretended  he  was  repeating  my  opinions.  The  Empress 
treated  me  with  coldness ;  I  saw  that  she  avoided  speaking 
to  me,  and,  for  my  part,  I  did  not  consider  myself  bound  to 
seek  her  confidence. 

The  Emperor,  who  enjoyed  sowing  dissension  between 
us,  perceived  the  coolness,  and  paid  me,  in  consequence,  all 

the  more  attention;  but  Mme.  de  X ,  who  had  been 

taught  to  dislike  me,  and  was  uneasy  at  the  favor  in  which  I 
was  held,  and  who  also  perhaps  did  me  the  honor  of  feeling 
a  little  jealous,  tried  in  every  way  to  injure  me.  As  every- 
thing in  this  world  works  together  for  evil  purposes  only 
too  readily,  she  found  an  opportunity  in  which  she  was  per- 
fectly successful. 

On  the  other  hand,  Eugene  Beauharnais  and  the  Princess 
Louis  were  convinced  that  I  had  betrayed  their  mother,  in 
order  to  further  the  ambition  of  M.  de  Remusat,  who  pre- 
ferred the  favor  of  the  master  to  that  of  the  mistress.  M. 
de  Remusat  held  himself  entirely  aloof  from  all  these  mat- 
ters ;  but,  where  ambition  is  concerned,  the  probable  is  al- 
ways the  true  in  the  belief  of  dwellers  in  a  court.  Eugene, 
who  had  been  friendly  to  my  husband,  now  kept  aloof  from 
him.  As  courtiers,  our  position  was  not  an  unfavorable  one ; 
but,  as  we  were  merely  honorable  people  and  would  not  reap 
any  disgraceful  advantage  from  it,  we  were  both  greatly  dis- 
tressed. 

I  have  still  to  relate  how  Mme.  de  X contrived  to 

strike  the  final  blow.  Among  my  mother's  friends  and  mine 
was  Mme.  Charles  de  Damas,  whose  daughter,  the  wife  of 
the  Count  de  Yogiie,  was  the  intimate  friend  of  my  sister, 
and  was  also  intimate,  though  in  a  less  degree,  with  myself. 
Mme.  de  Damas  was  an  ardent  Hoyalist,  and  in  the  habit  of 
expressing  her  opinions  with  some  imprudence.  She  had 
even  been  accused,  after  the  affair  of  the  3d  Mvose  (the  in- 
fernal machine),  of  having  concealed  certain  Chouans  who 
were  implicated.  In  the  autumn  of  1804  Mme.  de  Damas 
was  exiled  to  a  distance  of  forty  leagues  from  Paris,  on  ac- 


238  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

count  of  some  foolish  speeches.  This  act  of  severity  sorely 
distressed  both  the  mother  and  the  daughter :  the  latter  was 
near  her  confinement,  and  I,  having  witnessed  their  tears  and 
shared  their  grief,  went  for  consolation  to  the  Empress.  She 
spoke  to  her  husband,  and  he  was  good  enough  to  listen  to 
my  petition,  and  to  grant  me  the  revocation  of  the  sentence. 

Mme.  de  Damas,  in  her  impulsive  and  affectionate  way, 
published  abroad  the  service  I  had  rendered  her,  and,  bound 
by  feelings  of  gratitude  to  the  Empress,  as  well  as  alarmed 
at  the  risk  she  had  run,  she  became  thenceforth  more  careful 
of  her  words.  She  never  mentioned  politics  to  me,  but  re- 
spected my  position  as  I  respected  her  feelings. 

It  happened,  however,  that  in  the  Marquise  de  C ,  a 

lady  who  had  formerly  been  celebrated  at  Court  and  in  so- 
ciety for  her  brilliancy  of  repartee,  Mme.  de  Damas  had  an 

enemy.  Mme.  de  C was  on  friendly  terms  with  Mme.  de 

X ,  and,  having  discovered  her  liaison  with  the  Emper- 
or, she  extorted  an  avowal  of  the  facts  from  Mme.  de  X . 

Then,  being  of  an  active  and  scheming  disposition,  she 
undertook  to  advise  her  friend  in  her  capacity  of  mistress 
to  the  sovereign.  They  had  some  conversation  about  me, 

and  Mme.  de  C ,  who  always  imagined  the  intrigues  of 

Versailles  in  the  incidents  of  the  Emperor's  Court,  con- 
cluded, with  some  show  of  probability,  that  it  was  my  inten- 
tion to  supplant  the  new  favorite.  As  I  was  reputed  to  pos- 
sess some  talent,  and  as  my  reputation  on  this  point  owed  a 
great  deal  to  my  mother's,  it  was  supposed  that  I  must  be 

fond  of  intrigue.  Mme.  de  C ,  intending  to  do  a  bad 

turn  to  Mme.  de  Damas,  and  at  the  same  time  to  injure  me, 

mentioned  her  to  Mme.  de  X as  a  woman  more  devoted 

than  ever  to  her  Eoyalist  opinions,  ready  to  enter  into  any 
secret  correspondence,  and  to  abuse  the  indulgence  with 
which  she  had  been  treated,  by  acting  against  the  Emperor 
whenever  she  could.  My  friendship  with  her  was  described 
as  more  intimate  than  it  really  was ;  and  this,  being  reported 
to  the  Emperor,  served  to  prejudice  him  against  me.  He  no 


THE  EMPRESS  CONFIDES  IN  ME.  239 

longer  summoned  me  to  join  him  at  the  card-table,  nor  con- 
versed with  me ;  I  was  not  invited  to  Malmaison  or  to  the 
hunting-parties ;  in  short,  I  found  myself  in  disgrace  without 
being  able  to  guess  at  the  cause,  for,  on  account  of  my  fail- 
ing health,  I  was  living  in  comparative  solitude  and  retire- 
ment. My  husband  and  I  were  too  closely  united  for  dis- 
grace to  fall  on  one  without  including  the  other,  and  neither 
of  us  could  understand  why  we  were  thus  treated. 

As  the  Emperor's  friendship  for  me  cooled,  I  regained 
the  confidence  of  his  wife,  who  took  me  back  into  favor  as 
lightly  as  she  had  given  me  up,  and  without  a  word  of  ex- 
planation. By  this  time  I  knew  her  sufficiently  to  under- 
stand that  explanations  would  be  useless.  She  enlightened 
me  respecting  the  Emperor's  displeasure.  She  had  learned 
from  him  that  Mme.  de  C and  Mme.  de  X had  in- 
formed against  me.  He  had  gone  so  far  as  to  acknowledge  to 
his  wife  that  he  was  in  love,  and  gave  her  to  understand  that 
he  must  not  be  thwarted ;  adding,  in  order  to  console  her, 
that  it  was  a  passing  fancy,  which  would  only  be  increased  by 
opposition,  but  would  soon  pass  away  if  it  were  not  balked. 

The  Empress  made  up  her  mind  to  endurance  ;  but  she 

never  addressed  Mme.  de  X .     The  latter  cared  little  for 

that,  however,  and  regarded  the  conjugal  broils  of  which  she 
was  the  cause  with  impudent  indifference.  Besides,  under 
the  direction  of  Mme.  Murat,  she  ministered  to  the  Emper- 
or's tastes  by  retailing  to  him  a  great  deal  of  evil  of  a  great 
number  of  people.  Many  persons  were  ruined  during  her 
spell  of  favor,  and  she  fostered  the  worst  qualities  of  the 
Emperor's  suspicious  nature. 

When  I  learned  this  new  accusation  against  me,  I  again 
requested  an  audience  of  him  ;  but  this  time  his  manner  was 
stern.  He  reproached  me  with  being  friendly  only  with  his 
enemies,  with  having  defended  the  Polignacs,  with  being  an 
agent  of  the  "aristocrats."  "I  intended  to  make  a  great 
lady  of  you,"  he  said — "to  raise  your  fortunes  to  a  great 
height ;  but  all  that  can  only  be  the  reward  of  entire  devo- 
20 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KfiMUSAT. 

tion.  You  must  break  with  your  former  friends,  and,  the 
next  time  Mme.  de  Damas  comes  to  your  house,  you  must 
refuse  her  admittance,  and  have  her  told  that  you  can  not 
associate  with  my  enemies.  Then  I  shall  believe  in  your 
attachment."  I  made  no  attempt  to  point  out  to  him  how 
contrary  such  a  mode  of  action  would  be  to  all  my  habits; 
but  I  consented  to  refrain  from  seeing  Mme.  de  Damas, 
whose  conduct,  at  least  since  the  pardon  had  been  granted 
her,  I  defended.  He  spoke  to  me  very  severely;  he  was 
deeply  prejudiced,  and  I  saw  that  I  must  only  trust  to  time 
to  open  his  eyes. 

A  few  days  later  Mme.  de  Damas  was  again  ordered  into 
exile.  She  was  ill  in  bed ;  and  the  Emperor  sent  Corvisart 
to  her,  to  certify  whether,  in  fact,  she  could  not  be  removed. 
Corvisart  was  a  friend  of  mine,  and  gave  his  opinion  accord- 
ing to  my  wishes ;  but  at  length  Mme.  de  Damas  recovered 
and  left  Paris.  It  was  long  before  she  returned.  I  no  longer 
visited  her,  nor  did  she  come  to  me,  but  she  retained  her 
former  affection  for  me,  and  perfectly  understood  the  mo- 
tives which  constrained  me  to  act  as  I  did.  Count  Charles 
de  Damas,  who  was  straightforward,  simple,  and  less  indis- 
creet than  his  wife,  was  never  annoyed  by  the  police,  while 
they  kept  constant  watch  on  Mme.  de  Damas.  Some  years 
later,  the  Emperor  gave  Mme.  de  Yogiie  to  understand  that 
he  wished  her  to  be  presented  at  Court :  this  was  during  the 
reign  of  the  Archduchess.* 

Meanwhile  the  Bonapartes  triumphed.  Eugene,  the  con- 
stant object  of  their  jealousy,  was  positively  badly  treated, 
and  was  a  source  of  secret  trouble  to  the  Emperor.  Sud- 
denly, toward  the  end  of  January,  in  very  severe  weather, 
Eugene  received  orders  to  proceed  with  his  regiment  to  Italy 
within  four  and  twenty  hours.  Eugene  felt  convinced  that 
he  was  in  complete  disgrace.  The  Empress,  believing  this  to 
be  the  doing  of  Mme.  de  X ,  wept  bitterly,  but  her  son 

*  On  the  death  of  M.  de  Vogue,  his  widow  married  the  Count  de  Chastellux, 
now  a  colonel,  and  brother-in-law  to  the  imprudent  La  Bedoyere. 


A  BROTHERS  OBEDIENCE.  241 

strictly  forbade  her  to  make  any  appeal.  He  took  leave  of 
the  Emperor,  who  received  him  with  coldness,  and  we  heard 
the  following  day  that  the  Guards'  Hegiment  of  Guides  had 
departed,  its  colonel  marching  at  its  head,  notwithstanding 
the  inclemency  of  the  season. 

The  Princess  Louis,  in  speaking  to  me  of  this  harsh  act, 
expressed  her  pride  in  her  brother's  obedience.  "If  the 
Emperor,"  she  said,  "  had  exacted  such  a  thing  from  a  mem- 
ber of  his  own  family,  you  would  have  seen  what  a  noise 
would  have  been  made ;  but  not  one  word  has  been  uttered 
in  this  case,  and  I  think  Bonaparte  must  be  impressed  by 
such  an  act  of  submission."  And  in  fact  he  was,  but  still 
more  by  the  ill-natured  satisfaction  of  his  brothers  and  sisters. 
He  liked  to  disappoint  them ;  and  although,  in  a  fit  of  jeal- 
ousy, he  had  sent  away  his  stepson,  he  immediately  re- 
warded him  for  his  good  behavior.  On  the  1st  of  February, 
1805,  the  Senate  received  two  letters  *  from  the  Emperor. 

*  The  following  are  the  two  messages  addressed  by  the  Emperor  on  the  same 
day,  12th  Pluvi6se,  year  13  (1st  February,  1805),  to  the  Senate: 

"  SENATORS  :  We  have  appointed  our  brother-in-law,  Marshal  Murat,  to  be 
Grand  Admiral  of  the  Empire.  We  desire  to  recognize  not  only  his  services  to  the 
country,  and  the  particular  attachment  he  has  shown  to  our  person  throughout  his 
whole  life,  but  also  what  is  due  to  the  luster  and  dignity  of  the  Crown,  by  raising 
to  the  rank  of  Prince  an  individual  so  closely  allied  to  us  by  the  ties  of  blood." 

"  SENATORS  :  We  have  appointed  our  stepson,  Eugene  Beauharnais,  Vice- 
Arch-Chaneellor  of  State  to  the  Empire.  Among  all  the  acts  of  our  sovereignty, 
there  is  not  one  more  gratifying  to  our  heart.  Brought  up  by  our  care,  and 
from  his  childhood,  under  our  own  people,  he  has  proved  himself  worthy  of  imi- 
tating, and,  with  the  help  of  God,  of  some  day  surpassing,  the  ^samples  and  the 
lessons  we  have  given  him.  Although  he  is  still  young,  we  shall  from  this  day 
forward  consider  him,  on  account  of  the  experience  we  have  had  of  his  conduct 
in  the  most  momentous  circumstances,  as  one  of  the  pillars  of  our  throne,  and 
one  of  the  most  able  defenders  of  his  country.  In  the  midst  of  the  cares  and 
trials  of  the  high  rank  to  which  we  have  been  called,  our  heart  has  sought  for 
affection  in  the  tenderness  and  consoling  friendship  of  this  child  of  our  adop- 
tion; a  consolation  which  is,  no  doubt,  necessary  to  all  men,  but  preeminently 
so  to  us,  whose  every  moment  is  devoted  to  the  affairs  of  nations.  Our  paternal 
blessing  will  follow  this  young  Prince  throughout  his  whole  career,  and,  with 
the  help  of  Providence,  he  will  one  day  be  worthy  of  the  approbation  of  pos- 
terity."—P.  R. 


24:2  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  EtiMUSAT. 

In  one  he  announced  the  elevation  of  Marshal  Murat  to  the 
rank  of  Prince  and  Grand  Admiral  of  the  Empire.  This 
was  the  reward  of  his  recent  acts  of  complaisance,  and  the 
result  of  Mme.  Murat's  importunities.  In  the  other  letter, 
which  was  couched  in  nattering  and  affectionate  terms  toward 
Eugene,  he  was  created  Yice- Arch-Chancellor  of  State.  This 
was  one  of  the  great  posts  of  the  Empire.  Eugene  heard  of 
his  promotion  when  ha  was  a  few  miles  from  Lyons,  where 
the  courier  found  him  on  horseback  at  the  head  of  his  regi- 
ment, covered  with  thickly  falling  snow. 

Before  I  deal  with  the  union  of  the  crown  of  Italy  with 
that  of  France,  a  great  event  which  afforded  us  a  new  spec- 
tacle, and  was  the  cause  of  the  war  that  broke  out  in  the 
autumn  of  this  year,  I  will  relate  all  that  remains  to  be  told 
concerning  Mme.  de  X . 

She  seemed  to  engross  the  Emperor's  thoughts  more  and 
more ;  and,  as  she  became  assured  of  her  power,  so  she  be- 
came less  circumspect  in  her  conduct  toward  the  Empress, 
and  seemed  to  delight  in  her  misery.  During  a  short  stay 
which  we  made  at  Malmaison,  appearances  were  more  than 
ever  outraged.  To  the  surprise  of  every  one,  the  Emperor 

would  walk  about  the  grounds  with  Mme.  de  X and 

young  Mme.  Savary — whose  eyes  and  tongue  were  not  at  all 
formidable — and  he  devoted  less  time  than  usual  to  business. 
The  Empress  remained  in  her  room,  weeping,  tortured  with 
apprehension,  brooding  upon  recognized  liaisons,  disgrace 
and  oblivion  for  herself,  and  possibly  divorce,  the  continu- 
ally recurring'  object  of  her  apprehensions.  She  no  longer 
had  courage  for  useless  altercations ;  but  her  sadness  bore 
witness  to  her  grief,  and  at  last  touched  her  husband's  heart. 
Perhaps  his  love  for  her  revived,  or  possession  weakened  his 

passion  for  Mme.  de  X ,  or  he  became  ashamed  of  the 

sway  the  latter  exercised  over  him ;  but,  whatever  was  the 
cause,  that  which  he  had  predicted  of  himself  came  to  pass. 
One  day,  when  he  was  alone  with  his  wife  and  saw  her 
weeping  at  something  he  had  said,  he  suddenly  resumed  the 


AN  INTERVIEW.  243 

affectionate  manner  of  former  times,  and,  admitting  her  to 
the  most  intimate  confidence,  owned  to  her  once  more  that 
he  had  been  very  much  infatuated,  but  said  that  it  was  all 
over.  He  added  that  he  had  detected  an  attempt  to  govern 

him — that  Mme.  de  X had  told  him  a  number  of  very 

ill-natured  stories  ;  and  he  actually  concluded  by  asking  the 
Empress  to  assist  him  to  put  an  end  to  a  liaison  which  he  no 
longer  cared  about. 

The  Empress  was  not  in  the  least  vindictive ;  it  is  but 
just  to  say  that  for  her.  So  soon  as  she  found  that  she  no 
longer  had  anything  to  fear,  her  anger  vanished.  Delighted 
to  be  rid  of  her  trouble,  she  showed  no  severity  toward  the 
Emperor,  but  once  more  became  the  gentle  and  indulgent 
wife,  always  ready  to  forgive  him.  She  objected  to  any 
publicity  on  this  occasion,  and  even  promised  her  husband 

that,  if  he  would  alter  his  behavior  to  Mme.  de  X ,  she, 

on  her  part,  would  alter  hers  also,  and  would  shield  the  lady 
from  any  annoyance  which  might  result  from  the  change. 
She  only  claimed  the  right  to  an  interview  with  Mme.  de 

X .  Accordingly,  she  sent  for  her,  and  spoke  to  her 

plainly  and  frankly,  pointing  out  the  risk  she  had  run,  ex- 
cusing her  apparent  levity  on  the  plea  of  her  youth  and  im- 
prudence, recommending  greater  discretion  for  the  future, 
and  promising  that  the  past  should  be  forgotten. 

During  this  conversation  Mme.  de  X remained  per- 
fectly self-possessed,  calmly  denying  that  she  deserved  any 
such  admonitions,  evincing  no  emotion,  not  a  trace  of  grati- 
tude. In  sight  of  the  whole  Court,  which  for  some  time 
continued  to  observe  her,  she  maintained  a  cool  and  self- 
contained  demeanor,  which  proved  that  her  heart  was  not 
much  concerned  in  the  intimacy  now  broken  off,  and  also 
that  she  could  keep  her  private  feelings  well  in  check — for 
it  is  difficult  to  believe  that  her  vanity,  at  any  rate,  was  not 
deeply  mortified.  The  Emperor,  who,  as  I  have  already 
said,  dreaded  the  least  appearance  of  being  ruled  by  anybody, 
ostentatiously  exhibited  his  freedom.  He  was  not  even 


244  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

commonly  civil  to  Mme.  de  X ;  he  never  looked  at  her ; 

and  he  spoke  slightingly  of  her,  either  to  Mme.  Bonaparte, 
who  could  not  deny  herself  the  pleasure  of  repeating  his 
words,  or  to  men  with  whom  he  was  on  familiar  terms.  He 
was  careful  to  explain  that  this  had  only  been  a  passing 
fancy,  and  would  relate  the  successive  phases  of  it  with  in- 
decent candor,  most  insulting  toward  her  who  had  been  its 
object.  He  was  ashamed  of  his  infatuation,  for  it  was  a 
proof  that  he  had  submitted  to  a  power  stronger  than  his 
own. 

This  behavior  confirmed  me  in  a  belief  which  I  had 
often  expounded  to  the  Empress  in  order  to  console  her.  To 
be  the  wife  of  such  a  man  might  be  a  grand  and  enviable 
position,  gratifying  to  one's  pride  at  least ;  but  to  be  his  mis- 
tress could  never  be  otherwise  than  unsatisfactory,  for  his 
was  not  a  nature  to  compensate  a  weak  and  loving  woman 
for  the  sacrifices  she  would  have  to  make  for  him,  nor  to  af- 
ford an  ambitious  one  the  means  of  exercising  power. 

With  the  short  reign  of  Mme.  de  X the  influence  of 

Murat  and  the  Bonapartes  came  for  the  time  being  to  an 
end ;  for,  on  the  reconciliation  of  the  Emperor  with  his  wife, 
his  former  confidence  in  her  revived,  and  he  heard  from  her 
lips  of  all  the  petty  schemes  of  which  she  had  been  the  vic- 
tim and  himself  the  object.  I  profited  in  a  measure  by  the 
change  ;  yet  the  impression  which  had  been  made  could  not 
be  altogether  effaced,  and  the  Emperor  retained  his  convic- 
tion that  M.  de  Eemusat  and  I  were  incapable  of  the  sort  of 
devotion  that  he  required,  a  devotion  claiming  the  sacrifice 
both  of  personal  inclinations  and  of  those  convenances  which 
he  despised.  He  had  a  right,  perhaps,  to  expect  the  former : 
one  ought  to  renounce  a  Court  life,  unless  one  can  make  it  the 
only  sphere  of  one's  thoughts  and  actions ;  and  neither  my 
husband  nor  I  was  capable  of  doing  so.  I  have  always  longed  to 
attach  myself  with  all  my  heart  to  the  duties  of  my  state,  and 
at  this  period  I  was  too  heart-sore  not  to  feel  some  constraint 
in  performing  those  which  devolved  on  me.  I  began  to  see 


DIFFERENCE  OF  CHARACTER  IN  SOVEREIGNS.  245 

that  the  Emperor  was  not  the  man  I  had  taken  him  for. 
Already  he  inspired  me  with  fear  rather  than  with  affection  ; 
and,  in  proportion  as  my  assiduity  in  obeying  him  increased, 
I  felt  the  sharp  pain  of  vanishing  illusions,  and  I  suffered 
beforehand  from  all  that  I  foresaw.  The  quaking  of  the 
earth  on  which  we  stood  alarmed  both  M.  de  Remusat  and 
myself,  and  he  especially  resigned  himself  with  difficulty  to 
a  life  which  was  extremely  unpleasing  to  him. 

When  I  recall  these  troubles  now,  how  happy  I  am  to 
see  him,  quiet  and  contented,  at  the  head  of  affairs  in  an  im- 
portant province,  honorably  fulfilling  the  duty  of  a  good 
citizen,  and  serving  his  country  usefully !  *  Can  there  be  a 
worthier  employment  of  the  faculties  of  an  enlightened  and 
high-hearted  man,  or  a  greater  contrast  with  the  restless, 
troublesome,  not  to  say  ridiculous  life  which  has  to  be  led, 
without  one  moment's  intermission,  in  the  courts  of  kings  ? 
I  say  courts,  because  they  are  all  alike.  No  doubt  the  dif- 
ference of  character  in  sovereigns  has  some  influence  over 
the  lives  of  those  who  surround  them ;  there  are  shades  of 
difference  in  the  homage  exacted  by  Louis  XIV.,  our  own 
King  Louis  XVIII.,  the  Emperor  Alexander,  or  Bonaparte. 
But,  though  masters  may  differ,  courtiers  are  everywhere  the 
same ;  the  same  passions  are  in  play,  for  vanity  is  invariably 
their  secret  spring.  Jealousy,  the  longing  to  supplant  others, 
the  fear  of  being  stopped  on  the  road,  or  finding  others  pre- 
ferred to  one's  self — these  do,  and  always  will,  cause  similar 
perturbations ;  and  I  am  prof  oundly  persuaded  that  any  one, 
who,  dwelling  in  a  palace,  wishes  to  exercise  his  faculties  of 
thinking  and  of  feeling,  must  be  unhappy. 

Toward  the  end  of  this  winter  the  Imperial  Court  was 
again  augmented.  A  number  of  persons,  among  whom  I 
could  name  some  who  are  now  inexorable  to  all  who  ever 
were  in  the  Emperor's  service,  were  eagerly  bidding  for  place. 
The  Empress,  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  M.  de  B£musat  received 

*  At  the  time  I  write,  September,  1818,  my  husband  is  Prefect  of  the  D6par- 
tement  du  Nord. 


24:6  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

their  requests,  and  handed  long  lists  to  Bonaparte,  who  would 
smile  when  he  saw  in  the  same  column  the  names  of  ci-de- 
vant Liberals,  of  soldiers  who  had  been  jealous  of  his  pro- 
motion, and  of  gentlemen  who,  after  having  jeered  at  what 
they  called  our  farce  of  royalty,  were  now  all  begging  to  be 
allowed  to  play  parts  in  it.  Some  of  these  petitions  were 
granted.  Mesdames  de  Turenne,  de  Montalivet,  de  Bouille, 
Devaux,  and  Marescot  were  appointed  Ladies-in- Waiting ; 
MM.  Hedouville,  de  Croij,  de  Mercy  d'Argenteau,  de 
Tournon,  and  de  Bondy  were  made  Chamberlains  to  the 
Emperor ;  MM.  de  Beam,  de  Courtomer,  and  the  Prince  de 
Gavre,  Chamberlains  to  the  Empress ;  M.  de  Canisy,  Equer- 
ry;  M.  de  Bausset,  Prefect  of  the  Palace,  etc. 

This  numerous  Court  consisted  of  various  elements  for- 
eign to  each  other,  but  all  were  brought  to  one  level  by  fear 
of  the  all-powerful  master.  There  was  little  rivalry  among 
the  ladies ;  they  were  strangers  to  each  other,  and  did  not 
become  intimate.  The  Empress  treated  them  all  alike. 
Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld,  light-hearted  and  easy-tempered, 
showed  no  jealousy  toward  any  one.  The  Mistress  of  the 
Robes  was  amiable,  silent,  and  nothing  more.  Day  by  day 
I  drew  back  from  the  somewhat  dangerous  friendship  of  the 
Empress;  but  I  must  own  that  such  was  her  evenness  of 
temper,  so  gracious  was  her  bearing,  that  the  Court  circle  by 
which  she  was  surrounded  was  free  from  disturbance  or  jeal- 
ousy. 

It  was  not  so  in  the  case  of  the  Emperor — but  then  he 
himself  designedly  kept  up  a  state  of  disquiet.  For  instance, 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  had  slightly  diminished  the  impor- 
tance of  M.  de  Remusat's  position,  not  with  the  intention  of 
injuring  him,  but  in  order  to  satisfy  some  new-comers  who 
were  jealous  of  my  husband,  was  brought  into  closer  contact 
with  him  afterward,  and  began  to  appreciate  his  worth  and 
to  show  some  interest  in  him.  Bonaparte  perceived  this. 
The  slightest  appearance  of  private  friendship  alarmed  him, 
and  he  took  the  minutest  precautions  to  prevent  anything  of 


BONAPARTE'S  ADVICE.  247 

the  kind ;  so  he  spoke  to  m  j  husband  one  day  in  a  tone  of 
unusual  cordiality.  "  Take  care,"  said  he,  "  M.  de  Talley- 
rand seems  to  be  making  advances  to  you ;  but  I  know  to  a 
certainty  that  he  bears  you  no  good  will." 

"  And  why  should  M.  de  Talleyrand  bear  me  ill  will  ? " 
said  my  husband  to  me,  on  repeating  these  words.  "We  could 
not  tell  why,  but  this  speech  gave  us  a  feeling  of  distrust, 
which  was  all  that  the  Emperor  wanted. 

Such  was  the  state  of  things  at  the  Emperor's  Court  in 
the  spring  of  1805.  I  will  now  retrace  my  steps  and  give  an 
account  of  the  momentous  resolution  that  was  come  to  con- 
cerning the  crown  of  Italy. 


BOOK    II. 


CHAPTEE  XII. 

(1805.) 

Opening  of  the  Session  of  the  Senate— M.  de  Talleyrand's  Eeport— Letter  from  the 
Emperor  to  the  King  of  England — Union  of  the  Crown  of  Italy  to  the  Empire — 
Mme.  Bacciochi  becomes  Princess  of  Piombino — Performance  of  "  Athalie" — 
The  Emperor  goes  to  Italy— His  Dissatisfaction— M.  de  Talleyrand— Prospect 
of  War  with  Austria. 

ON  the  4th  of  February,  1805,  we  were  informed  by  the 
"  Moniteur  "  that  the  King  of  England  had  intimated,  in  his 
speech  on  the  opening  of  Parliament  on  the  16th  of  January, 
that  the  Emperor  had  made  fresh  propositions  of  reconcilia- 
tion. The  Government  had  replied  that  nothing  could  be 
agreed  upon  without  previously  conferring  with  the  other 
Powers  of  the  Continent,  and  especially  with  the  Emperor 
Alexander. 

According  to  custom,  some  sharp  comments  were  made 
upon  this  speech,  which,  while  they  put  forward  the  friendly 
relations  that  existed — at  least,  outwardly — between  ourselves 
and  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  yet  admitted  a  certain  coolness 
between  the  Emperors  of  Russia  and  of  France,  and  attributed 
this  coolness  to  the  intrigues  of  MM.  de  Marcoff  and  de  Yo- 
ronzoff,  who  were  both  partisans  of  the  English  policy.  The 
King's  speech  also  announced  war  between  England  and 
Spain. 

On  the  same  day,  the  4th  of  February,  the  Senate  having 
been  assembled,  M.  de  Talleyrand  presented  a  report,  very 


LETTER  FROM  THE  EMPEROR.  249 

ably  drawn  up,  in  which  he  expounded  the  system  of  con- 
duct adopted  by  Bonaparte  toward  the  English.  He  de- 
scribed it  as  a  constant  effort  for  peace,  while  entertaining 
no  fear  of  war.  He  drew  attention  to  the  state  of  our  prepa- 
rations which  threatened  the  English  coasts,  many  flotillas 
being  equipped  and  ready  in  the  harbors  ;  and  to  the  army, 
large  in  numbers  and  high  in  heart.  He  gave  an  account  of 
the  means  of  defense  which  the  enemy  had  gathered  together 
on  the  coasts,  and  which  proved  that  the  landing  of  the 
French  was  not  looked  upon  as  impossible ;  and,  after  be- 
stowing the  highest  praise  on  the  conduct  of  the  Emperor, 
he  read  to  the  assembled  Senate  the  following  letter,  ad- 
dressed to  the  King  of  England : 

"  SIR  AND  BROTHER  : 

"  Having  been  called  by  Providence,  and  by  the  voice  of 
the  Senate,  the  people,  and  the  army,  to  the  throne  of  France, 
my  first  feeling  is  a  desire  for  peace. 

"  France  and  England  are  wasting  their  prosperity.  They 
may  contend  for  centuries  ;  but  are  their  Governments  right- 
fully fulfilling  their  most  sacred  duty,  and  does  not  their  con- 
science reproach  them  with  so  much  blood  shed  in  vain,  for 
no  definite  end  ?  I  am  not  ashamed  to  take  the  initiative. 
I  have,  I  think,  sufficiently  proved  to  the  whole  world  that  I 
do  not  fear  the  chances  of  war.  Indeed,  war  can  bring  me 
nothing  to  fear.  Peace  is  my  heartfelt  wish,  but  war  has 
never  been  adverse  to  my  renown.  I  implore  your  Majesty 
not  to  deprive  yourself  of  the  happiness  of  bestowing  peace 
on  the  world.  Do  not  delegate  so  consolatory  an  action  to 
your  children.  Never  was  there  a  better  occasion,  nor  a 
more  favorable  moment  for  imposing  silence  on  passion,  and 
for  listening  only  to  the  voice  of  humanity  and  reason.  If 
this  opportunity  be  lost,  what  term  can  be  assigned  to  a  war 
which  all  my  endeavors  might  fail  to  terminate  ?  In  the  last 
ten  years  your  Majesty's  kingdom  has  increased  in  magnitude 
and  wealth  by  more  than  the  whole  extent  of  Europe  ;  your 


250  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU8AT. 

nation  has  reached  the  highest  point  of  prosperity.  What 
do  you  hope  to  gain  by  war  ?  The  coalition  of  some  con- 
tinental powers  ?  The  Continent  will  remain  tranquil.  A 
coalition  would  but  increase  the  preponderance  and  the  con- 
tinental greatness  of  France.  To  renew  internal  difficulties  ? 
The  times  are  no  longer  the  same.  To  destroy  our  revenues  ? 
Revenues  founded  on  good  husbandry  are  not  to  be  destroyed. 
To  snatch  her  colonies  from  France  ?  Colonies  are  objects 
of  but  secondary  importance  to  France ;  and  does  not  your 
Majesty  already  possess  more  than  you  can  keep  ?  If  your 
Majesty  will  reflect  on  it,  you  will  see  that  war  will  be  with- 
out an  object,  without  any  probable  result  for  yourself.  Ah ! 
how  sad  a  prospect  is  it  to  engage  nations  in  war  for  war's 
sake! 

"  The  world  is  large  enough  for  our  two  nations  to  live 
in  it,  and  the  power  of  reason  is  sufficient  to  enable  us  to 
overcome  all  difficulties,  if  on  both  sides  there  is  the  will  to 
do  BO.  In  any  case,  I  have  fulfilled  a  duty  which  I  hold  to 
be  righteous,  and  which  is  dear  to  my  heart.  I  trust  your 
Majesty  will  believe  in  the  sincerity  of  the  sentiments  I  have 
just  expressed,  and  in  my  earnest  desire  to  give  you  a  proof 

of  them.     On  this,  etc. 

(Signed)  "  NAPOLEON. 

«PAMS  ji2Niv6se,yeari3. 

'(  Id  January,  1806." 

After  having  eulogized  this  letter  (surely  a  remarkable 
one !)  as  a  striking  proof  of  Bonaparte's  love  for  the  French, 
of  his  desire  for  peace,  and  of  his  generous  moderation,  M. 
de  Talleyrand  communicated  the  reply  of  Lord  Mulgrave, 
the  Foreign  Secretary.  It  was  as  follows : 

"  His  Majesty  has  received  the  letter  addressed  to  him  by 
the  chief  of  the  French  Government,  dated  the  2d  inst. 

"  His  Majesty  has  no  dearer  wish  than  to  embrace  the 
first  opportunity  of  once  more  procuring  for  his  subjects  the 
advantages  of  a  peace  which  shall  be  founded  on  bases  not 


LORD  MULGRAVE'S  REPLY.  251 

incompatible  with,  the  permanent  security  and  the  essential 
interests  of  his  States.  His  Majesty  is  convinced  that  this 
end  can  only  be  attained  by  an  arrangement  which  will  pro- 
vide alike  for  the  future  security  and  tranquillity  of  Europe, 
and  prevent  a  renewal  of  the  dangers  and  misfortunes  which 
have  beset  the  Continent. 

"  His  Majesty,  therefore,  feels  it  to  be  impossible  to  reply 
more  decisively  to  the  question  which  has  been  put  to  him, 
until  he  has  had  time  to  communicate  with  those  continental 
Powers  with  whom  he  is  allied,  and  particularly  with  the 
Emperor  of  Eussia,  who  has  given  the  strongest  proofs  of 
his  wisdom  and  good  feeling,  and  of  the  deep  interest  which 
he  takes  in  the  security  and  independence  of  Europe. 

"  Uth  January,  1805." 

The  vague  and  indefinite  character  of  this  thoroughly 
diplomatic  reply  exhibited  the  Emperor's  letter  to  great 
advantage.  That  letter  was  firm  in  tone,  and  bore  every 
appearance  of  magnanimous  sincerity.  It  had,  therefore,  a 
good  effect,  and  the  various  reports  of  those  whose  task  it 
was  to  present  it  to  the  three  great  bodies  of  the  State  put  it 
in  the  most  favorable  light.  . 

The  report  of  Kegnault  de  Saint-Jean  d'Angely,  Coun- 
cilor of  State,  is  remarkable  and  interesting  even  now.  The 
praises  accorded  to  the  Emperor,  thpugh  carried  to  excess, 
are  finely  phrased ;  the  picture  of  Europe  is  ably  drawn ; 
that  of  the  evil  which  war  must  entail  on  England  is  at  least 
specious ;  and,  finally,  the  description  of  our  prosperity  at 
that  period  is  impressive,  and  very  little,  if  at  all,  exagger- 
ated. 

"France,"  he  said,  "has  nothing  to  ask  from  Heaven,  but 
that  the  sun  may  continue  to  shine,  the  rain  to  fall  on  our 
fields,  and  the  earth  to  render  the  seed  fruitful." 

All  this  was  true  then,  and,  had  a  wise  administration,  a 
moderate  government,  and  a  liberal  constitution  been  given  to 
France,  that  prosperity  would  have  been  consolidated.  But 


252        MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^SMUSAT. 

constitutional  ideas  formed  no  part  of  Bonaparte's  plan. 
Perhaps  he  really  believed,  as  he  often  said,  that  the  French 
character  and  the  geographical  position  of  France  were  op- 
posed to  representative  government.  Perhaps,  conscious  of 
his  own  strength  and  ability,  he  could  not  make  up  his  mind 
to  sacrifice  to  the  future  well-being  of  France  those  advan- 
tages which  he  believed  he  could  give  us  by  the  mere  strength 
of  his  will.  Whatever  was  the  case,  he  seldom  lost  an  oppor- 
tunity of  disparaging  our  neighbor's  form  of  government. 

"  The  unfortunate  position  in  which  you  have  placed  your 
nation,"  he  wrote  in  the  "  Moniteur,"  addressing  himself  to 
the  English  Cabinet,  "  can  only  be  explained  by  the  ill  for- 
tune of  a  State  whose  home  policy  is  insecure,  and  whose 
Government  is  the  wretched  tool  of  Parliamentary  factions 
and  of  a  powerful  oligarchy." 

Although  he  felt  at  times  that  he  was  opposing  the  spirit 
of  the  age,  he  believed  himself  strong  enough  to  resist  it.  At 
a  later  period  he  said :  "  During  my  lifetime  I  shall  reign  as 
I  please;  but  my  son  must  perforce  be  a  Liberal."  And 
meanwhile  he  pictured  to  himself  the  creation  of  feudal  states, 
believing  that  he  could  make  them  acceptable,  and  preserve 
them  from  the  criticism  which  was  beginning  to  assail  ancient 
institutions,  by  establishing  them  on  a  scale  so  grand  that,  as 
our  pride  would  be  enlisted,  our  reason  might  be  silenced. 
He  believed  that  once  again  he  could  exhibit  what  history 
has  already  witnessed,  the  world  subject  to  a  "  People-King," 
but  that  royalty  was  to  be  represented  in  his  own  person. 
A  combination  of  Eastern  and  Roman  institutions,  bearing 
also  some  resemblance  to  the  times  of  Charlemagne,  was  to 
transform  the  sovereigns  of  Europe  into  great  feudatories  of 
the  French  Empire ;  and  perhaps,  if  the  sea  had  not  effectu- 
ally preserved  England  from  invasion,  this  gigantic  project 
might  have  been  carried  out. 

Shortly  after,  the  Emperor  laid  the  foundation-stone  of 
this  brain-built  edifice.  I  allude  to  the  union  of  the  Iron 
Crown  with  that  of  France. 


UNION  OF  THE  GROWN  OF  ITALY.  253 

On  the  17th  of  March  M.  de  Melzi,  Vice-President  of  the 
Italian  Kepublic,  accompanied  by  the  principal  members  of 
the  Council  of  State  and  a  numerous  deputation  of  presi- 
dents of  the  electoral  colleges,  deputies  from  the  Corps  Le- 
gislatif,  and  other  important  persons,  was  received  by  the 
Emperor  on  his  throne,  and  submitted  to  him  the  ardent 
desire  of  the  Council  that  he  would  graciously  consent  to 
reign  over  the  ultramontane  republic  also.  "Our  present 
Government,"  said  M.  de  Melzi,  "  can  not  continue,  because 
it  throws  us  behind  the  age  in  which  we  live.  Constitution- 
al monarchy  is  everywhere  indicated  by  the  finger  of  progress. 

"  The  Italian  Kepublic  claims  a  King,  and  her  interests 
demand  that  this  King  should  be  Napoleon,  on  the  condition 
that  the  two  crowns  shall  be  united  on  his  head  only,  and 
that,  so  soon  as  the  Mediterranean  is  once  more  free,  he  will 
himself  nominate  a  successor  of  his  own  blood." 

Bonaparte  replied  that  he  had  always  labored  for  the  wel- 
fare of  Italy ;  that  for  this  end  he  would  accept  the  crown, 
because  he  believed  that  any  other  course  would  just  now  be 
fatal  to  her  independence;  and  that  afterward,  when  the 
time  came  for  so  doing,  he  would  gladly  place  the  Iron 
Crown  on  some  younger  head,  as  he  should  always  be  ready 
to  sacrifice  himself  for  the  interests  of  the  States  over  which 
he  was  called  to  reign. 

On  the  following  day,  the  18th  of  March,  he  proceeded 
to  the  Senate  in  state,  and  announced  both  the  request  of  the 
Council  and  his  own  consent.  M.  de  Melzi  and  all  the  Ital- 
ians took  the  oaths,  and  the  Senate  approved  and  applauded 
as  usual.  The  Emperor  concluded  his  speech  by  declaring 
that  the  genius  of  evil  would  seek  in  vain  to  rekindle  the  fire 
of  war  on  the  Continent ;  that  which  had  been  united  to  the 
Empire  would  remain  united. 

He  doubtless  foresaw  that  this  event  would  be  the  occa- 
sion of  an  early  war,  at  least  with  the  Emperor  of  Austria, 
which,  however,  he  was  far  from  dreading.  The  army  was 
becoming  weary  of  inaction ;  the  invasion  of  England  was  * 


254:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

too  perilous.  It  might  be  that  favorable  circumstances  would 
render  the  landing  possible,  but  how  could  the  army  main- 
tain its  footing  afterward  in  a  country  where  reinforcement 
would  be  wellnigh  impossible  ?  And,  in  case  of  failure,  what 
would  be  the  chances  of  retreat  ?  It  may  be  observed,  in 
the  history  of  Bonaparte,  that  he  always  contrived  to  avoid 
a  positively  hopeless  position  as  far  as  possible,  and  especial- 
ly for  himself  personally.  A  war,  therefore,  would  serve  his 
purpose  by  relieving  him  from  this  project  of  invasion,  which, 
from  the  moment  he  renounced  it,  became  ridiculous. 

During  the  same  session,  the  State  of  Piombino  was  given 
to  the  Princess  Elisa.  On  announcing  this  to  the  Senate, 
Bonaparte  stated  that  the  principality  had  been  badly  governed 
for  several  years  ;  that  the  interests  of  France  were  concerned, 
on  account  of  the  facilities  which  it  offered  for  communica- 
tion with  the  Island  of  Elba  and  with  Corsica ;  and  that  the 
gift  was  not  a  token  of  special  affection,  but  an  act  in  accord- 
ance with  a  wise  policy,  with  the  splendor  of  the  crown,  and 
with  the  interests  of  nations. 

As  a  proof  that  these  gifts  of  the  Emperor  were  in  the 
nature  of  fiefs,  the  Imperial  decree  was  to  the  effect  that  the 
children  of  Mme.  Bacciochi,  on  succeeding  to  their  mother, 
should  receive  investiture  from  the  Emperor  of  the  French ; 
that  they  should  not  marry  without  his  consent ;  and  that  the 
Princess's  husband,  who  was  to  assume  the  title  of  Prince  of 
Piombino,  should  take  the  following  oath  : 

"  I  swear  fidelity  to  the  Emperor ;  I  promise  to  aid  with 
my  whole  power  the  garrison  of  the  Island  of  Elba ;  and  I 
declare  that  I  will  not  cease,  under  any  circumstances,  to 
fulfill  the  duties  of  a  good  and  faithful  subject  toward  his 
Majesty  the  Emperor  of  the  French." 

A  few  days  after  this  the  Pope  solemnly  baptized  the 
second  son  of  Louis  Bonaparte,  who  was  held  at  the  font  by 
his  father  and  mother.  This  great  ceremony  took  place  at 
Saint  Cloud.  The  park  was  illuminated  on  the  occasion, 
and  public  games  were  provided  for  the  people.  In  the 


RACINE'S  "ATHALIE."  255 

evening  there  was  a  numerous  reception,  and  a  first  perform- 
ance of  "  Athalie"  at  the  theatre  at  Saint  Cloud. 

Racine's  great  tragedy  had  not  been  performed  since  the 
Revolution.  The  Emperor,  who  admitted  he  had  never  been 
impressed  by  reading  the  play,  was  much  struck  by  its  repre- 
sentation, and  repeated  on  that  occasion  that  he  greatly  wished 
such  a  tragedy  might  be  written  during  his  own  reign.  He 
gave  leave  that  it  should  be  performed  in  Paris ;  and  thence- 
forth most  of  our  great  plays  resumed  their  place  on  the 
stage,  whence  they  had  been  prudently  banished  by  the  Rev- 
olution. 

Some  few  lines,  nevertheless,  were  cut  out,  lest  applica- 
tion might  be  made  of  them  to  present  circumstances.  Luc 
de  Lancival,  the  author  of  "  Hector,"  and  shortly  afterward 
Esmenard,  author  of  "  Le  Poeme  de  la  Navigation,"  were  in- 
trusted with  the  task  of  revising  Corneille,  Racine,  and  Vol- 
taire. But,  with  all  due  respect  to  these  precautionary  mea- 
sures of  a  too  careful  police,  the  missing  lines,  like  the  statues 
of  Brutus  and  Cassius,  were  the  more  conspicuous  by  their 
absence. 

In  consequence  of  the  momentous  decision  he  had  arrived 
at,  the  Emperor  announced  that  he  would  speedily  proceed 
to  Italy,  and  fixed  the  epoch  of  his  coronation  for  the  month 
of  May.  He  convened  the  Italian  Legislature  for  the  same 
date,  and  issued  several  decrees  and  ordinances  relating  to 
the  new  customs  to  be  established  in  Italy. 

He  also  appointed  ladies-in-waiting  and  chamberlains  to 
attend  on  his  mother ;  and  among  others  M.  de  Cosse-Brissac, 
who  had  solicited  that  favor.  At  the  same  time  Prince  Bor- 
ghese  was  declared  a  French  citizen,  and  the  ladies-in-waiting 
received  an  accession  to  their  number  in  Mme.  de  Canisy, 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  women  of  her  time. 

Mme.  Murat  gave  birth  to  a  child  just  at  this  time ;  she 

was  then  residing  at  the  Hotel  Thelusson,  at  the  end  of  the 

Rue  d'Artois.     It  was  observed  on  this  occasion  that  the 

luxuriousness  of  the  new  Princesses  was  continually  on  the 

21 


256  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

increase,  and  yet  it  had  not  then  reached  the  height  which  it 
afterward  attained.  Mine.  Murat's  bedchamber  was  hung 
with  pink  satin,  the  bed  and  window  curtains  were  of  the 
same  material,  and  these  hangings  were  trimmed  with  broad 
and  very  fine  lace,  instead  of  fringe. 

The  preparations  for  the  Emperor's  departure  soon  occu- 
pied us  exclusively.  This  event  was  fixed  for  the  2d  of 
April,  when  the  Pope  was  also  to  leave  Paris ;  and  a  few 
days  previously  M.  de  Remusat  started  for  Milan,  in  charge 
of  the  regalia  and  the  crown  diamonds,  which  were  to  be 
used  at  the  coronation.  This  was  for  me  the  beginning  of 
troubles,  which  were  destined  to  recur  for  some  years.  I  had 
never  before  been  separated  from  my  husband,  and  I  was  so 
much  accustomed  to  the  enjoyments  of  my  home  that  I  found 
it  hard  to  be  deprived  of  them.  It  made  the  Court  life  to 
which  I  was  condemned  more  irksome,  and  was  very  pain- 
ful to  my  husband  also,  who,  like  myself,  fell  into  the  error 
of  letting  his  feelings  be  perceived.  I  have  already  said 
that  a  courtier  is  a  failure  if  he  suffer  any  feelings  to 
divert  his  attention  from  the  minutiae  which  constitute  his 
duties. 

My  distress  at  my  husband's  departure  on  a  journey  which 
seemed  to  me  so  long,  and  even  dangerous — for  my  imagina- 
tion exaggerated  everything  regarding  him — made  me  desir- 
ous that  he  should  be  accompanied  by  a  friend  of  ours,  named 
Salembemi,  who  had  formerly  been  an  officer  in  the  navy. 
He  was  badly  off — had  only  the  salary  of  some  small  appoint- 
ment to  live  on,  with  what  M.  de  Kemusat,  who  employed 
him  as  his  secretary,  paid  him.  To  him  I  confided  the  care 
of  my  husband's  health.  He  was  a  clever  man,  but  difficult 
to  deal  with,  somewhat  malicious,  and  of  a  peevish  temper. 
He  was  the  cause  of  more  than  one  of  our  troubles,  and  this 
is  why  I  now  make  mention  of  him.* 

*  M.  Salembemi,  who  had  a  ready  pen,  wrote  freely  from  Italy,  and  dwelt 
rather  on  the  scandals  of  the  Court  than  on  politics.  His  letters  were  opened 
and  shown  to  the  Emperor,  who  ordered  him  to  leave  within  twenty -four  hours. 


THE  EMPEROR  GOES  TO  ITALY.  257 

My  delicate  health  made  it  impossible  to  include  me  in 
the  suite.  The  Empress  seemed  to  regret  this.  As  for  my- 
self, I  was,  on  the  whole,  glad  of  a  rest  after  the  busy  life  I 
had  been  leading,  and  happy  to  remain  with  my  mother  and 
my  children.* 

Mesdames  de  la  Rochefoucauld,  d'Arberg,  de  Serrant, 
and  Savary,  a  considerable  number  of  chamberlains,  the  great 
officers,  and,  in  short,  a  numerous  and  youthful  Court,  ac- 
companied the  Empress.  The  Emperor  started  on  the  2d, 
and  the  Pope  on  the  4th  of  April.  At  every  stage  of  his 
journey  to  Home  his  Holiness  received  tokens  of  great  re- 
spect ;  and  he  then,  no  doubt,  believed  he  was  bidding  adieu 
to  France  for  ever. 

Murat  remained  as  Governor  of  Paris,  and  with  a  charge 
of  superintendence  which  he  extended  over  everything ;  but 
his  reports,  I  think,  were  not  always  disinterested.  Fouche, 
who  was  more  liberal,  if  I  may  use  the  expression,  in  the 
exercise  of  his  police  functions,  and  who  was  well  entitled 
to  consider  himself  necessary,  carried  things  with  rather  a 

His  disgrace  caused  some  vexation  to  my  grandfather.  Although  a  certain  con- 
straint may  be  observed  in  the  correspondence  of  the  author  of  these  Memoirs, 
and  many  phrases  are  inserted  for  the  purpose  of  contenting  a  jealous  master, 
it  is  probable  that  the  letters  of  the  husband  and  wife  were  also  regarded  as  too 
free  in  expression  for  courtiers.  We  know  that  the  hateful  custom  of  opening 
letters  was  transmitted  from  the  First  to  the  Second  Empire ;  and  it  is  a  curious 
coincidence  that,  on  the  4th  of  September,  1870,  a  letter  addressed  to  my  father 
by  my  mother  was  discovered  in  a  drawer  of  the  writing-table  of  the  Emperor 
Napoleon  III.  That  letter  was,  however,  evidently  written  without  any  fear  of 
the  post-office.— P.  R. 

*  My  grandmother,  whose  health  had  always  been  delicate,  now  began  to  be 
seriously  indisposed,  and  unable  for  any  exertion.  Her  disposition  became  in- 
fluenced by  this.  She  lost  none  of  her  goodness,  but  her  composure,  serenity, 
and  gayety  failed  her.  She  suffered  frequently  from  nervous  attacks,  which, 
together  with  her  naturally  vivid  imagination,  rendered  her  more  liable  to  dis- 
quiet and  melancholy.  The  journey  undertaken  by  her  husband,  although  dif- 
fering so  much  from  the  dangerous  exploits  of  the  time,  and,  in  fact,  little  more 
than  a  pleasure-trip,  troubled  her  to  a  degree  which  can  hardly  be  believed  now- 
adays, and  astonished  even  the  most  romantic  women  of  a  period  so  far  removed 
from  ours.  A  worldly  life,  and  especially  a  Court  life,  became  more  and  more 
distasteful  to  her. 


258  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

high  hand,  but  was  conciliatory  to  all  parties,  according  to 
his  system  of  making  himself  useful  to  everybody. 

The  Arch-Chancellor  Cambaceres  also  remained  as  Di- 
rector of  the  Council  of  State — an  office  of  which  he  acquit- 
ted himself  well — and  to  do  the  honors  of  Paris.  He  re- 
ceived a  good  deal  of  company,  welcoming  them  with  a 
gloomy  civility  which  gave  him  an  almost  ridiculous  air. 

Paris  and  France  were  at  that  time  in  repose ;  all  things 
seemed  to  work  together  for  order,  and  the  general  state  of 
subjection  to  be  complete.  The  Emperor  went  first  to  Cham- 
pagne. He  passed  a  day  at  the  fine  old  chateau  of  Brienne,  in 
order  that  he  might  visit  the  scenes  of  his  childhood.  Mme. 
de  Brienne  professed  extreme  enthusiasm  for  him,  and,  as 
worship  was  not  displeasing  to  him,  he  behaved  to  her  with 
great  amiability.  It  was  amusing,  just  then,  to  see  some  of 
her  kinsfolk  at  Paris  receiving  the  lively  letters  she  wrote 
to  them  on  this  Imperial  visit.  However,  as  she  described 
events,  these  letters  produced  a  good  effect  in  what  we  call 
here  "  good  society."  Success  is  easy  to  the  powerful ;  they 
must  needs  be  very  ill-natured  or  very  blundering  when  they 
fail  to  please. 

A  few  days  after  all  these  grand  departures,  the  follow- 
ing paragraph  appeared  in  the  "Moniteur":  "Monsieur 
Jerome  Bonaparte  has  arrived  at  Lisbon,  on  board  an  Ameri- 
can vessel.  Among  the  passengers  are  Mr.  and  Miss  Patter- 
son. M.  Je*rome  immediately  took  the  post  for  Madrid. 
Mr.  and  Miss  Patterson  have  reembarked.  It  is  understood 
that  they  have  returned  to  America."  *  I  believe  that  they 
crossed  to  England.f 

*  The  Emperor  announced  the  return  of  his  brother  to  the  Minister  of  the 
Admiralty,  Vice-Admiral  DScres,  in  the  following  terms  : 

"  MILAN,  23d  FlorSal,  year  13  (13th  May,  1805). 
"MONSIEUR  DECRES: 

"  M.  J6r6me  has  arrived.  Mademoiselle  Patterson  has  returned  to  America. 
He  has  owned  his  fault,  and  does  not  recognize  this  person  as  his  wife.  He 
promises  miracles  of  good  behavior.  Meanwhile  I  have  sent  him  to  Genoa  for 
some  time."— P.  R.  f  See  Appendix. 


M.  DE  R&HUSAT  IN  MILAN.  259 

This  Mr.  Patterson  was  no  other  than  the  father-in-law 
of  Jerome,  who,  having  fallen  in  love  while  in  America  with 
the  daughter  of  an  American  merchant,  had  made  her  his 
wife,  persuading  himself  that,  after  some  displeasure  on  his 
brother's  part,  he  should  obtain  his  forgiveness.  But  Bona- 
parte, who  was  already  forming  other  projects  for  his  family, 
was  highly  incensed,  annulled  the  marriage,  and  forced  his 
brother  to  an  immediate  separation.  Jerome  traveled  to 
Italy,  and  joined  him  at  Turin,  but  was  very  badly  received. 
He  was  ordered  to  join  one  of  our  fleets  then  cruising  in  the 
Mediterranean,  remained  at  sea  for  a  considerable  time,  and 
was  not  restored  to  favor  until  several  months  afterward. 

Throughout  all  France  the  Emperor  was  welcomed  with 
genuine  enthusiasm.  He  staid  at  Lyons,  where  he  secured 
the  good  will  of  the  traders  by  issuing  decrees  favorable  to 
their  interests.  He  crossed  Mont  Cenis  and  remained  a  few 
days  at  Turin. 

Meanwhile  M.  de  Kemusat  had  reached  Milan,  where  he 
met  Prince  Eugene,  who  received  him  with  his  characteristic 
cordiality.  The  Prince  questioned  my  husband  as  to  what 
had  taken  place  in  Paris  since  he  had  left  that  city,  and  suc- 
ceeded in  eliciting  some  details  concerning  Mme.  de  X 

which  were  very  grievous  to  his  feelings.  M.  de  Remusat 
wrote  to  me  that,  pending  the  arrival  of  the  Court,  he  was 
leading  a  tolerably  quiet  life.  He  explored  Milan,  which 
seemed  to  him  a  dull  town,  and  its  palace  was  dull  also. 
The  inhabitants  showed  little  affection  for  the  French.  The 
nobles  shut  themselves  up  in  their  houses,  under  the  pretext 
that  they  were  not  rich  enough  to  do  the  honors  of  the  place 
in  a  fitting  style.  Prince  Eugene  endeavored  to  collect  them 
about  him,  but  succeeded  imperfectly.  The  Italians,  still  in 
a  state  of  suspense,  did  not  know  whether  to  rejoice  or  re- 
pine at  the  novel  destiny  which  we  forced  upon  them. 

M.  de  Remusat  sent  me  at  this  period  some  rather  curious 
details  of  the  life  of  the  Milanese.  Their  ignorance  of  all 
that  constitutes  agreeable  society ;  the  absolute  non-existence 


260  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

among  them  of  family  life,  the  husbands,  strangers  to  their 
wives,  leaving  them  to  the  care  of  a  cavaliere  servente  •  the 
dullness  of  the  theatres ;  the  darkness  of  the  house,  whither 
people  go  in  morning-dress,  to  occupy  themselves  in  the 
nearly  closed  boxes  with  anything  rather  than  listening  to 
the  opera;  the  want  of  variety  in  the  performances;  the 
difference  between  the  costumes  and  those  of  France — all 
these  things  gave  M.  de  Remusat  matter  for  remarks,  which 
were  all  to  the  advantage  of  our  beloved  country,  while  they 
also  increased  his  desire  to  return  to  France  and  to  me. 

During  this  time  the  Emperor  was  revisiting  the  scenes 
of  his  former  victories.  He  held  a  grand  review  on  the 
battle-field  of  Marengo,  and  distributed  crosses  on  that  occa- 
sion. The  troops  who  had  been  massed  together  on  the 
pretext  of  this  review,  and  remained  afterward  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  Adige,  furnished  a  reason  or  pretext  on 
which  the  Austrian  Government  strengthened  their  already 
very  powerful  line  of  defense  behind  this  river ;  and  French 
policy  took  offense  at  these  precautions. 

On  the  9th  of  May  the  Emperor  reached  Milan.  His 
presence  caused  great  excitement  in  the  town,  and  the  cir- 
cumstances attending  the  coronation  aroused  the  same  ambi- 
tion as  they  had  caused  in  Paris.  The  highest  nobles  of 
Milan  began  to  long  for  the  new  distinctions  and  the  advan- 
tages appertaining  to  them ;  independence  and  unity  of  gov- 
ernment were  held  out  to  the  Italians,  and  they  gave  them- 
selves up  to  the  hopes  they  were  allowed  to  conceive. 

Immediately  on  the  arrival  of  the  Court  at  Milan,  I  was 
struck  by  the  dismal  tone  of  M.  de  Remusat's  letters,  and 
soon  afterward  I  learned  that  he  was  suffering  from  his 
master's  displeasure.  The  naval  officer  of  whom  I  have 
spoken,  a  satirical  spectator  of  what  was  going  on  at  Milan, 
having  taken  it  into  his  head  to  write  to  Paris  some  lively 
and  rather  sarcastic  accounts  of  what  was  passing  before  his 
eyes,  his  letters  had  been  opened,  and  M.  de  Remusat  was 
ordered  to  send  him  back  to  Paris.  He  was  not  at  first  told 


A  BREACH  OF  CONFIDENCE.  261 

the  reason  for  this  order,  and  it  was  only  at  a  later  period 
that  he  learned  its  cause.  The  displeasure  of  the  Emperor 
was  not  confined  to  the  secretary ;  it  fell  also  on  him  who 
had  brought  him  to  Italy. 

Besides  this,  Prince  Eugene  let  fall  some  of  the  details  he 
had  obtained  in  confidence  from  my  husband ;  and,  finally, 
it  was  discovered  from  our  letters,  as  I  have  said  before,  that 
our  thoughts  and  aspirations  were  not  entirely  centered  in 
the  interests  of  our  places  at  Court.  These  causes  were  suf- 
ficient to  anger  a  master  who  was  by  nature  irascible ;  and 
so,  according  to  his  custom  of  using  men  for  his  own  advan- 
tage when  they  could  be  useful  to  him,  whatever  might  be 
his  feelings  toward  them,  he  exacted  from  my  husband  a 
service  of  the  most  rigid  punctuality,  because  the  length  of 
time  M.  de  Kemusat  had  passed  at  Court  had  given  him  ex- 
perience in  a  ceremonial  which  daily  became  more  minute, 
and  to  which  the  Emperor  attached  greater  importance.  At 
the  same  time  he  treated  him  with  harshness  and  severity, 
repeating  continually  to  those  who,  with  good  reason,  would 
praise  the  high  and  estimable  qualities  of  my  husband, 
"  All  that  you  say  may  be  true,  but  he  does  not  belong  to 
me  as  I  wish  him  to  belong  to  me."  This  reproach  was  al- 
ways on  his  lips  during  the  years  we  passed  in  his  service, 
and  perhaps  there  is  some  merit  in  our  never  having  ceased 
to  deserve  it. 

This  Court  life,  so  busy  and  yet  so  idle,  gave  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand and  M.  de  Remusat  an  opportunity  of  becoming  bet- 
ter acquainted,  and  was  the  beginning  of  an  intimacy  which 
at  a  later  period  caused  me  many  and  various  emotions. 

The  fine  tact  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  discerned  the  right- 
mindedness  and  the  keenness  of  observation  of  my  husband ; 
they  agreed  on  a  multitude  of  subjects,  and  the  difference 
of  their  dispositions  did  not  prevent  them  from  enjoying 
an  interchange  of  ideas.  One  day  M.  de  Talleyrand  said 
to  M.  de  Remusat :  "  I  can  see  that  you  distrust  me,  and  I 
know  whence  your  caution  proceeds.  "We  serve  a  master 


262  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R$MUSAT. 

who  does  not  like  intimacies.  When  he  appointed  us  both 
to  the  same  service,  he  foresaw  there  might  be  friendship 
between  us.  You  are  a  clever  man,  and  that  is  enough  to 
make  him  wish  that  you  and  I  should  remain  apart.  He 
therefore  prejudiced  you  in  some  way  against  me,  and  he 
also  tried,  by  I  know  not  what  reports,  to  put  me  on  my 
guard.  It  will  not  be  his  fault  if  we  do  not  remain  stran- 
gers to  one  another.  This  is  one  of  his  weaknesses,  and  we 
must  recognize,  indulge,  and  excuse,  without,  however,  sub- 
mitting to  it."  This  straightforward  way  of  speaking,  en- 
hanced by  the  graceful  manner  which  M.  de  Talleyrand 
knows  so  well  how  to  assume  when  he  likes,  pleased  my 
husband,  who,  moreover,  found  in  this  friendship  something 
to  make  up  for  the  weariness  of  his  post.* 

At  this  period  M.  de  K6musat  perceived  that  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  who  had  the  influence  over  Bonaparte  of  his 
utility,  felt  considerable  jealousy  of  Fouche,  whom  he  dis- 
liked. He  entertained  a  positive  contempt  for  M.  Maret, 
and  gratified  it  by  the  biting  sarcasm  in  which  he  habitually 
indulged,  and  which  few  could  escape.  Although  under  no 
delusion  regarding  Bonaparte,  he  nevertheless  served  him 
well ;  for  he  tried  to  restrain  his  passions  by  the  position  in 

*  This  mutual  distrust  between  his  Great  Chamberlain  and  his  First  Cham- 
berlain, originated  and  kept  up  by  the  Emperor,  was  slow  in  dying  out ;  and, 
notwithstanding  the  good  will  of  both,  no  real  intimacy  existed  between  them 
until  the  following  year,  during  the  tour  in  Germany.  After  the  first  advances 
had  been  made  by  M.  de  Talleyrand,  my  grandfather  wrote  to  his  wife  in  the 
following  terms,  in  a  letter  dated  Milan,  17th  Flore"al,  year  13  (7th  May,  1805): 
"M.  de  Talleyrand  has  been  here  for  the  last  week.  It  only  depends  on  my- 
self to  believe  him  my  best  friend.  In  words  he  seems  friendship  itself.  I 
often  go  to  see  him.  He  takes  my  arm  whenever  he  happens  to  meet  me,  and 
talks  with  me  in  a  low  voice  for  two  or  three  hours  at  a  time ;  he  tells  me  vari- 
ous things  which  have  every  appearance  of  being  confidential,  interests  himself 
in  my  career,  talks  to  me  about  it,  and  wants  me  to  be  distinguished  among  all 
the  other  Chamberlains.  Tell  me,  my  dear  one,  am  I  really  held  in  esteem,  or 
does  he  want  to  play  me  a  trick  ?  "  Shortly  after  this,  his  language  completely 
changed,  and  the  friendship  became  intimate  and  affectionate  on  both  sides. — 
P.  R. 


WAR  BETWEEN  ENGLAND  AND  SPAIN.          263 

which  he  placed  him,  both  with  respect  to  foreign  affairs  and 
in  France;  and  he  also  advised  him  to  create  certain  insti- 
tutions which  would  control  him.  The  Emperor,  who,  as  I 
have  said,  liked  to  create,  and  who  seized  rapidly  upon  any- 
thing novel  and  impressive,  would  follow  the  advice  of  M. 
de  Talleyrand,  and,  in  concert  with  him,  would  lay  the  foun- 
dation of  some  useful  enterprise.  But  afterward  his  domi- 
neering temper,  his  suspicion,  his  dread  of  finding  himself 
restrained,  made  him  afraid  of  the  action  of  that  which  he 
had  himself  created,  and,  with  sudden  caprice,  he  would 
abruptly  suspend  or  relinquish  the  work  he  had  begun.  M. 
de  Talleyrand  was  provoked  by  this ;  but,  as  he  was  naturally 
indolent  and  careless,  and  did  not  possess  in  himself  those 
qualities  of  strength  and  perseverance  which  enable  a  man  to 
carry  his  points  in  detail,  he  usually  ended  by  neglecting  and 
abandoning  the  fatiguing  task  of  solicitude  and  superinten- 
dence. The  sequence  of  events  will,  however,  explain  all  this 
better  than  I  can  in  this  place. 

Meantime,  war  broke  out  between  England  and  Spain, 
and  we  were  frequently,  sometimes  successfully,  engaged  at 
sea.  A  fleet  which  sailed  out  from  Toulon  found  means  to 
join  the  Spanish  squadron,  and  the  press  exulted  loudly  over 
this  feat.* 

On  the  30th  of  May  Bonaparte  was  crowned  King  of 
Italy,  with  great  pomp.  The  ceremony  was  similar  to  that 
which  had  taken  place  in  Paris.  The  Empress  sat  in  a  gal- 
lery and  beheld  the  spectacle.  M.  de  Eemusat  told  me  that 
a  thrill  of  emotion  passed  over  the  crowd  in  the  church  at 
the  moment  when  Bonaparte,  taking  hold  of  the  Iron  Crown, 
and  placing  it  on  his  head,  uttered  in  a  threatening  voice  the 
antique  formula,  "  H  cielo  me  la  diede,  guai  a  chi  la  toc- 
cherd !  "  The  remainder  of  the  Emperor's  stay  at  Milan  was 
divided  between  attending  fetes  and  issuing  decrees  for  the 

*  This  passage  refers  to  the  achievement  of  Admiral  Villeneuve,  who,  hav- 
ing set  sail  on  the  30th  of  March,  contrived  to  get  clear  of  the  port  of  Toulon 
without  encountering  the  English  fleet. — P.  R. 


264  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

regulation  and  administration  of  his  new  kingdom.  Rejoic- 
ings took  place  all  over  France  in  honor  of  the  event ;  and 
yet  it  caused  great  apprehension  among  many  people,  who 
foresaw  that  war  with  Austria  would  result  from  it. 

On  the  4th  of  June  the  Doge  of  Genoa  arrived  at  Milan. 
He  came  to  beg  that  his  Republic  might  be  united  to  the 
Empire  ;  and  this  action,  which  had  been  concerted  or  com- 
manded beforehand,  was  made  the  occasion  of  a  grand  recep- 
tion and  state  ceremony.  That  portion  of  Italy  was  at  once 
divided  into  new  departments,  and  shortly  afterward  the  new 
constitution  was  sent  to  the  Italian  Legislature,  and  Prince 
Eugene  was  made  Viceroy  of  the  kingdom.  The  order  of 
the  Iron  Crown  was  created;  and,  the  distributions  being 
made,  the  Emperor  left  Milan  and  set  out  on  a  journey 
which,  under  the  appearance  of  a  pleasure-trip,  was  in  reality 
undertaken  for  the  purpose  of  reconnoitering  the  Austrian 
forces  on  the  line  of  the  Adige. 

By  the  treaty  of  Campo  Formio  Bonaparte  had  aban- 
doned the  Venetian  States  to  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  and 
the  latter  thus  became  a  formidable  neighbor  to  the  king- 
dom of  Italy.  On  his  arrival  at  Verona,  he  received  a  visit 
from  Baron  Vincent,  who  commanded  the  Austrian  garrison 
in  that  portion  of  the  town  which  belonged  to  his  sovereign. 
The  Baron  was  commissioned  to  inform  himself  of  the  state 
of  our  forces  in  Italy ;  the  Emperor,  on  his  part,  observing 
those  of  the  foreigner.  On  inspecting  the  banks  of  the 
Adige,  he  perceived  that  forts  would  have  to  be  constructed 
for  the  defense  of  the  river ;  but,  on  calculating  the  neces- 
sary time  and  expense,  he  said  that  it  would  be  better  and 
quicker  to  push  the  Austrians  back  from  that  frontier  alto- 
gether. From  that  moment  we  may  believe  that  he  had 
resolved  upon  the  war  which  was  declared  some  months 
later. 

It  was  impossible  that  the  Emperor  of  Austria  should 
regard  with  indifference  the  acquisition  by  France  of  so 
much  power  in  Italy ;  and  the  English  Government,  which 


PROSPECT  OF  WAR    WITH  AUSTRIA.  265 

was  making  great  efforts  to  stir  up  a  continental  war  against 
us,  skillfully  availed  itself  of  the  uneasiness  of  the  Emperor 
of  Austria,  and  the  dissatisfaction  which  was  by  degrees 
impairing  the  cordiality  of  our  relations  with  Russia.  The 
English  newspapers  hastened  to  assert  that  the  Emperor  had 
held  a  review  of  his  troops  in  Italy  for  the  sole  purpose  of 
putting  them  on  the  footing  of  a  formidable  enemy ;  and 
thenceforth  movements  began  in  the  Austrian  army.  Those 
appearances  of  peace  which  were  still  observed  up  to  the 
time  of  the  rupture  were  in  reality  preparations  by  both 
Emperors,  who  at  that  period  had  become  almost  declared 
enemies. 


CHAPTEK  XIII. 

(1805.) 

FStes  at  Verona  and  Genoa— Cardinal  Maury— My  Eetired  Life  in  the  Country^- 
Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte— "  Les  Templiers "— The  Emperor's  Eeturn— His 
Amusements — The  Marriage  of  M.  de  Talleyrand — War  is  declared. 

THE  Emperor  visited  Cremona,  Yerona,  Mantua,  Bo- 
logna, Modena,  Parma,  and  Piacenza,  and  then  went  to 
Genoa,  where  he  was  received  with  enthusiasm.  He  sent 
for  Le  Brun,  the  Arch-Treasurer,  to  whom  he  intrusted  the 
task  of  superintending  the  new  administration  to  be  estab- 
lished in  that  city.  At  Genoa  also  he  parted  with  his  sister 
Elisa,  who  had  accompanied  him  on  his  journey,  and  to 
whom  he  gave  the  little  Republic  of  Lucca,  adding  to  it  the 
States  of  Piombino.  At  this  period  the  French  began  once 
more  to  wear  foreign  decorations.  Prussian,  Bavarian,  and 
Spanish  orders  were  sent  to  the  Emperor,  to  be  distributed 
by  him  at  his  pleasure.  He  divided  them  among  his  great 
officers,  some  of  his  ministers,  and  a  few  of  his  marshals. 

At  Yerona  a  fight  between  dogs  and  bulls  was  given,  for 
the  entertainment  of  the  Emperor,  in  the  ancient  amphi- 
theatre, which  contained  forty  thousand  spectators.  Loud 
applause  greeted  his  arrival,  and  he  was  really  affected  by 
this  reception,  rendered  impressive  by  the  place,  and  by  the 
magnitude  of  the  crowd.  The  fetes  at  Genoa  were  very 
magnificent.  Floating  gardens  were  constructed  on  huge 
flat  barges;  these  gardens  led  to  a  floating  temple,  which, 
approaching  the  land,  received  Bonaparte  and  his  Court. 
Then  the  barges,  which  were  all  fastened  together,  were  set 


CARDINAL  MAURT.  267 

in  motion,  and  the  Emperor  found  himself  on  a  beautiful 
island  in  the  middle  of  the  harbor,  whence  he  had  a  com- 
plete view  of  Genoa,  and  of  the  simultaneous  displays  of 
fireworks  from  various  parts  of  the  splendidly  illuminated 
city. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  found  amusement  entirely  to  his  taste 
during  his  stay  at  Genoa ;  for  he  was  always  pleased  to  de- 
tect an  absurdity  and  to  point  it  out  to  others.  Cardinal 
Maury,  who  had  retired  to  Home  since  his  emigration,  had 
gained  a  great  reputation  there  by  the  firmness  of  his  atti- 
tude in  our  famous  Constituent  Assembly.  Nevertheless, 
he  was  desirous  of  returning  to  France,  and  M.  de  Talley- 
rand wrote  to  him  from  Genoa,  advising  him  to  come  at 
once  and  present  himself  to  the  Emperor.  The  Cardinal 
acted  upon  this,  and,  immediately  assuming  that  obsequious 
attitude  which  he  has  ever  since  scrupulously  retained,  he 
entered  Genoa,  loudly  proclaiming  that  he  had  come  to  see 
"  the  great  man." 

He  obtained  an  audience.  "  The  great  man "  took  his 
measure  very  quickly,  and,  while  esteeming  him  at  his  proper 
value,  resolved  to  make  him  give  a  complete  contradiction 
to  his  past  conduct.  He  gained  him  over  easily  by  flatter- 
ing him  a  little,  and  induced  him  to  return  to  France,  where 
we  have  since  seen  him  play  a  somewhat  ridiculous  part. 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  whose  recollections  of  the  Constituent 
Assembly  were  not  effaced,  took  many  opportunities  of 
wreaking  a  petty  revenge  upon  the  Cardinal,  by  bringing 
out  his  silly  sycophancy  in  the  most  skillful  and  cunning 
manner. 

While  the  Emperor  was  thus  traveling  through  Italy  and 
consolidating  his  power,  and  everybody  around  him  was  get- 
ting tired  of  the  continual  full-dress  parade  at  which  he  kept 
his  Court ;  while  the  Empress,  happy  in  the  elevation  of  her 
son,  and  yet  grieved  by  her  separation  from  him,  amused 
herself  and  distracted  her  mind  by  the  perpetual  fetes  given 
in  her  honor,  and  took  pleasure  in  exhibiting  her  magnificent 


268  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUS  AT. 

jewels  and  her  elegant  costumes,  I  was  leading  a  quiet  and 
pleasant  life  in  the  valley  of  Montmorency,  at  the  house  of 
Mme.  d'Houdetot.  I  have  already  mentioned  this  amiable 
and  accomplished  woman.  Her  recollections  enabled  me  to 
reconstruct  in  my  imagination  those  days  of  which  she  loved 
to  talk.  It  gave  me  great  pleasure  to  hear  her  speak  of  the 
famous  philosophers  whom  she  had  known,  and  whose  ways 
and  sayings  she  remembered  so  clearly.  I  was  so  full  of  the 
"  Confessions "  of  Jean  Jacques  Rousseau  that  I  was  not  a 
little  surprised  to  find  her  somewhat  cold  in  her  appreciation 
of  him;  and  I  may  say,  in  passing,  that  the  opinion  of 
Mme.  d'Houdetot,  who  would,  I  should  think,  have  re- 
garded Rousseau  with  exceptional  indulgence,  contributed 
not  a  little  to  make  me  distrust  his  character,  and  believe 
that  he  was  only  great  in  point  of  talent.* 

During  the  absence  of  the  Court,  Paris  was  quiet  and 
dull.  The  Imperial  family  were  living  in  the  country.  I 
sometimes  saw  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  at  Saint  Leu,  a  place 
which  her  husband  had  just  bought.  Louis  appeared  to  oc- 
cupy himself  exclusively  with  his  garden.  His  wife  wa-s 
lonely,  ill,  and  always  afraid  of  letting  some  word  at  which 
he  might  be  offended  escape  her.  She  had  not  ventured 
either  to  rejoice  at  the  elevation  of  Prince  Eugene  or  to 
weep  for  his  absence,  which  was,  of  course,  indefinite.  She 
wrote  to  him  seldom  and  briefly,  because  she  knew  that  the 
privacy  of  her  letters  was  not  respected.  On  one  occasion, 
when  I  was  visiting  her,  she  told  me  a  rumor  had  arisen 
that  the  Due  de  Polignac  and  his  brother,  who  were  im- 
prisoned in  the  Chateau  of  Ham,  had  attempted  to  escape ; 
that  they  had  been  transferred  to  the  Temple ;  and  that 
Mme.  Bonaparte  and  myself  were  accused  of  being  con- 
cerned in  the  affair.  This  accusation,  of  which  Mme.  Louis 
suspected  Murat  to  be  the  author,  was  utterly  unfounded. 
Mme.  Bonaparte  never  gave  a  thought  to  the  two  prisoners, 
and  I  had  entirely  lost  sight  of  the  Duchesse  de  Polignac. 

*  For  a  note  on  this  passage  by  M.  Paul  de  Remusat,  see  Appendix. 


RETIRED  LIFE  IN  TEE  COUNTRY.  269 

I  lived  in  the  strictest  retirement,  so  that  my  solitude 
might  supply  a  sufficient  answer  to  any  gossip  concerning 
my  conduct ;  but  I  was  more  and  more  distressed  by  the 
necessity  for  taking  such  precautions,  and  especially  at  being 
unable  to  use  the  position  in  which  I  was  placed  for  any  pur- 
poses of  utility  to  the  Emperor,  to  myself,  or  to  those  per- 
sons who  wished  to  obtain  certain  favors  from  him  through 
me.  There  was  no  want  of  kindness  in  my  natural  disposi- 
tion ;  and,  besides  that,  I  felt  a  degree  of  pride,  which  I  do 
not  think  was  misplaced,  in  serving  those  who  had  formerly 
blamed  me,  and  in  silencing  their  criticisms  of  my  conduct 
by  favors  which  could  not  be  said  to  lack  generosity.  I  also 
believed  that  the  Emperor  might  win  many  persons  who  now 
held  aloof,  by  the  permission  which  he  had  granted  me  to 
bring  their  solicitations  and  their  necessities  under  his  atten- 
tion ;  and  as  I  was  still  attached  to  him,  although  he  inspired 
me  with  more  fear  than  formerly,  I  would  have  gained  all 
hearts  for  him  had  it  been  possible.  But,  as  it  became  evi- 
dent that  my  plan  was  not  always  approved  by  him,  I  found 
I  had  to  think  of  defending  myself,  rather  than  assisting 
others. 

My  reflections  were  occasionally  very  sad.  At  other 
times  I  could  make  up  my  mind  to  the  difficulties  of  my 
position,  and  resolve  that  I  would  only  look  at  the  agreeable 
side  of  it.  I  enjoyed  a  certain  consideration  in  society,  and 
I  liked  that ;  and  we  were  fairly  prosperous,  though  not  free 
from  the  difficulties  which  always  beset  persons  whose  for- 
tunes have  no  secure  basis,  and  whose  expenses  are  obliga- 
tory. But  I  was  young,  and  I  thought  little  of  the  future. 
I  was  surrounded  by  pleasant  society ;  my  mother  was  per- 
fection to  me,  my  husband  most  kind  and  good,  my  eldest 
son  all  I  could  wish.  I  lived  on  the  pleasantest  terms  with 
my  kind  and  charming  sister.  All  this  turned  away  my 
thoughts  from  the  Court,  and  enabled  me  to  bear  the  draw- 
backs of  my  position  patiently.  My  health  was  a  perpetual 
trial  to  me ;  it  was  always  delicate,  and  an  unquiet  life  was 


270  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

evidently  injurious.  I  must  not,  however,  dwell  upon  my- 
self ;  I  do  not  know  how  I  have  been  tempted  into  doing  so. 
If  ever  this  narrative  should  be  read  by  others,  as  well  as  by 
my  son,  all  this  ought  to  be  suppressed  without  hesitation.* 

During  the  Emperor's  sojourn  in  Italy,  two  plays  had  a 
great  success  at  the  Comedie  Francaise.  The  first  was  "  Le 
Tartufe  des  Mceurs,"  translated,  or  rather  adapted,  from 
Sheridan's  "  School  for  Scandal,"  by  M.  Cheron ;  the  second 
was  "  Les  Templiers."  M.  Che'ron  had  been  a  deputy  to  the 
Legislative  Assembly.  He  married  a  niece  of  the  Abbe 
Morellet;  his  wife  and  himself  were  intimate  friends  of 
mine.  The  Abbe  had  written  to  the  Emperor  to  solicit  a 
place  for  M.  Cheron ;  and,  on  Bonaparte's  return,  "  Le  Tar- 
tufe des  Mceurs  "  was  acted  before  him.  He  was  so  much 
amused  by  the  play  that,  having  ascertained  the  name  of  its 
author  from  M.  de  Remusat,  and  also  learned  that  M.  Cheron 
was  well  deserving  of  employment,  he,  in  a  moment  of  easy 
good  nature,  sent  him  to  Poitiers  as  Prefect.  Unfortunately, 
he  died  there  three  years  afterward.  His  widow  is  a  most 
estimable  and  talented  person. 

M.  de  Fontanes  had  read  "  Les  Templiers  "  to  Bonaparte, 
who  approved  of  some  portions  of  the  piece,  but  objected  to 
others.  He  wished  to  have  certain  corrections  made,  but 
the  author  refused,  and  the  Emperor  was  annoyed.  He  was 
by  no  means  pleased  that  "  Les  Templiers  "  had  a  brilliant 
success,  and  set  himself  against  both  the  play  and  the  author, 
with  a  petty  despotism  which  was  characteristic  of  him  when- 
either  persons  or  things  incurred  his  displeasure.  All  this 
happened  when  he  came  back.f 

*  Notwithstanding  the  above  injunction,  my  readers  will  not  be  surprised 
that  I  have  retained  these  personal  details,  which  lend  a  particular  interest  to 
the  narrative. — P.  R. 

f  It  was  not  until  his  return  to  Paris  that  the  Emperor  displayed  the  ill 
humor  which  the  Memoirs  record.  On  the  1st  of  June,  1805,  he  wrote  from 
Milan  to  M.  Fouche  as  follows :  "  It  seems  to  me  that  the  success  of  '  Les 
Templiers'  leads  the  people  to  dwell  upon  this  point  of  French  history.  That 
is  well,  but  I  do  not  think  it  would  be  wise  to  allow  pieces  taken  from  historical 


THE  EMPEROR  RETURNS  TO  PARIS.  271 

Bonaparte  expected  that  his  wishes  and  his  opinions 
should  be  accepted  as  rules.  He  had  taken  a  fancy  to  the 
music  of  "  Les  Bardes,"  an  opera  by  Lesueur,  and  he  was 
almost  angry  thaf  the  Parisian  public  did  not  think  as  highly 
of  it  as  he  did. 

The  Emperor  came  direct  from  Genoa  to  Paris.  This 
was  to  be  his  last  sight  of  fair  Italy,  that  land  in  which  he 
seemed  to  have  exhausted  every  mode  of  impressing  the 
minds  of  men,  as  a  general,  as  a  pacificator,  and  as  a  sover- 
eign. He  returned  by  Mont  Cenis,  and  gave  orders  for 
great  works  which,  like  those  of  the  Simplon  Pass,  should 
facilitate  the  communications  between  the  two  nations.  The 
Court  was  increased  in  number  by  several  Italian  noblemen 
and  ladies  who  were  attached  to  it.  The  Emperor  had  al- 
ready appointed  some  Belgians  as  additional  chamberlains, 
and  the  obsequiorus  forms  in  which  he  was  addressed  were 
now  uttered  in  widely  varying  accents. 

He  arrived  at  Fontainebleau  on  the  llth  of  July,  and 
went  thence  to  reside  at  Saint  Cloud.  Shortly  after,  the 
"  Moniteur "  began  to  bristle  with  notes,  announcing  in  al- 
most threatening  language  the  storm  which  was  so  soon  to 
burst  over  Europe.  Certain  expressions  which  occurred 
from  time  to  time  in  these  notes  revealed  the  author  who 
had  dictated  them.  One  of  these  in  particular  made  an  im- 
pression on  my  memory.  It.  had  been  stated  in  the  English 
newspapers  that  a  supposed  genealogy  of  the  Bonaparte 
family,  which  retraced  its  nobility  to  an  ancient  origin,  had 

subjects  of  a  period  too  close  to  our  own  times  to  be  acted.  I  read  in  a  news- 
paper that  it  is  proposed  to  act  a  tragedy  on  the  subject  of  Henry  IV.  That 
epoch  is  near  enough  to  ours  to  arouse  popular  passions.  The  stage  requires 
antiquity,  and,  without  restricting  the  theatre  too  much,  I  think  you  ought  to 
prevent  this,  but  not  to  allow  your  interference  to  appear.  You  might  speak  of 
it  to  M.  Raynouard,  who  seems  to  be  a  man  of  ability.  Why  should  you  not 
induce  him  to  write  a  tragedy  upon  the  transition  from  the  first  to  the  second 
line  [from  Valois  to  Bourbon]  ?  Instead  of  being  a  tyrant,  he  who  should  suc- 
ceed to  that  would  be  the  saviour  of  the  nation.  The  oratorio  of  'Saul'  is  no 
other  than  this ;  it  is  a  great  man  succeeding  a  degenerate  king." 
22 


272  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

been  printed  in  London.  "  Researches  of  this  kind  are  pur- 
poseless," said  the  note.  "  To  all  those  who  may  ask  from 
what  period  dates  the  house  of  Bonaparte,  there  is  a  ready 
answer :  <  It  dates  from  the  18th  Brumaire.'  '• 

I  met  the  Emperor  after  his  return  with  mingled  feelings. 
It  was  difficult  not  to  be  affected  by  his  presence,  but  it  was 
painful  to  me  to  feel  that  my  emotion  was  tempered  by  the 
distrust  with  which  he  was  beginning  to  inspire  me.*  The 
Empress  received  me  in  a  most  friendly  manner,  and  I  avowed 
to  her  quite  frankly  the  trouble  that  was  on  my  mind.  I  ex- 
pressed my  surprise  that  no  past  proof  of  devotedness  or  dis- 
interested service  could  avail  with  her  husband  against  a 
sudden  prejudice.  She  repeated  my  words  to  him,  and  he 
well^ understood  what  they  meant;  but  he  persisted  in  his 
own  definition  of  what  he  called  devotedness,  which  was  an 
entire  surrender  of  one's  being,  of  one's  sentiments  and  one's 
opinions,  and  repeated  that  we  ought  to  give  up  all  our  for- 
mer habits,  in  order  to  have  only  one  thought,  that  of  his 
interest  and  his  will.  He  promised,  in  recompense  for  this 
exaction,  that  we  should  be  raised  to  a  great  height  of  rank 
and  fortune,  and  have  everything  that  could  gratify  our  pride. 
"  I  will  give  them,"  said  he,  speaking  of  us,  "  enough  to  en- 
able them  to  laugh  at  those  who  find  fault  with  them  now ; 
and,  if  they  will  break  with  my  enemies,  I  will  put  their  ene- 
mies under  their  feet."  Apart  from  this,  I  had  but  little 
annoyance  in  the  household,  and  my  position  was  easy  enough, 
as  Bonaparte's  mind  was  fixed  on  important  affairs  during  his 
stay  in  France  before  the  campaign  of  Austerlitz. 

A  circumstance  recurs  to  my  memory  at  this  moment, 
which  is  only  important  because  it  serves  to  depict  this 
strange  man.  I  therefore  give  it  a  place  here.  The  despot- 
ism of  his  will  grew  in  proportion  to  the  enlargement  of  the 
circle  with  which  he  surrounded  himself ;  he  wanted  to  be 
the  sole  arbiter  of  reputations,  to  make  them  and  to  unmake 
them  at  his  pleasure.  He  branded  a  man  or  blighted  a  woman 

*  For  a  fuller  explanation  of  this  passage,  see  Appendix. 


BONAPARTE^S  GALLANTRIES.  273 

for  a  word,  without  any  kind  of  hesitation ;  but  he  was  much 
displeased  that  the  public  should  venture  to  observe  and  to 
comment  on  the  conduct  of  either  the  one  or  the  other,  if 
he  had  placed  them  within  the  rays  of  the  aureole  with  which 
he  surrounded  himself. 

During  his  journey  in  Italy,  the  idleness  of  life  in  palaces 
and  its  opportunities  had  given  rise  to  several  gallant  adven- 
tures on  his  part,  which  were  more  or  less  serious,  and  these 
had  been  duly  reported  in  France,  where  they  fed  the  general 
appetite  for  gossip.  One  day,  when  several  ladies  of  the 
Court — among  them  those  who  had  been  in  Italy — were 
breakfasting  with  the  Empress,  Bonaparte  came  suddenly 
into  the  room,  and,  leaning  on  the  back  of  his  wife's  chair, 
addressed  to  one  and  another  of  us  a  few  words,  at  first  in- 
significant enough.  Then  he  began  to  question  us  about 
what  we  were  all  doing,  and  let  us  know,  but  only  by  hints, 
that  some  among  us  were  considerably  talked  of  by  the  pub- 
lic. The  Empress,  who  knew  her  husband's  ways,  and  was 
aware  that,  when  talking  in  this  manner,  he  was  apt  to  go 
very  far,  tried  to  interrupt  him ;  but  the  Emperor,  persisting 
in  the  conversation,  presently  gave  it  an  exceedingly  embar- 
rassing turn.  "  Yes,  ladies,  you  occupy  the  attention  of  the 
worthy  inhabitants  of  the  Faubourg  St.  Germain.  They  say, 

for  instance,  that  you,  Mme. ,  have  a  liaison  with  M. 

;  that  you,  Mme. ."  And  so  he  went  on,  address- 
ing himself  to  three  or  four  ladies  in  succession.  The  effect 
upon  us  all  of  such  an  attack  may  easily  be  imagined.  The 
Emperor  was  amused  by  the  confusion  into  which  he  threw 
us.  "  But,"  added  he,  "  you  need  not  suppose  that  I  approve 
of  talk  of  this  kind.  To  attack  my  Court  is  to  attack  myself, 
and  I  do  not  choose  that  a  word  shall  be  said,  either  of  me, 
or  of  my  family,  or  of  my  Court."  While  thus  speaking,  his 
countenance,  which  had  previously  been  smiling,  darkened, 
and  his  voice  became  extremely  harsh.  He  then  burst  out 
violently  against  that  section  of  Parisian  society  which  was 
still  rebellious,  declaring  that  he  would  exile  every  woman 


274:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMITS  AT. 

who  should  say  a  word  against  any  lady-in-waiting ;  and  he 
proceeded  to  work  himself  into  a  violent  passion  upon  this 
text,  which  he  had  entirely  to  himself,  for  not  a  single  one 
of  us  attempted  to  make  him  an  answer.  The  Empress  at 
length  rose  from  the  table  in  order  to  terminate  this  un- 
pleasant scene,  and  the  general  movement  put  an  end  to  it. 
The  Emperor  left  the  room  as  suddenly  as  he  had  come  in. 
One  of  our  ladies,  a  sworn  admirer  of  everything  that  Bona- 
parte said  and  did,  began  to  expatiate  upon  the  kindness  of 
such  a  master,  who  desired  that  our  reputation  should  be  held 

a  sacred  thing.  But  Mme.  de ,  a  very  clever  woman, 

answered  her  impatiently,  "Yes,  madame,  let  the  Emperor 
only  defend  us  once  again  in  that  fashion,  and  we  are  lost."  x 

Bonaparte  was  greatly  surprised  when  the  Empress  rep- 
resented to  him  the  absurdity  of  this :  scene,  and  he  always 
insisted  that  we  ought  to  have  been  grateful  for  the  readi- 
ness with  which  he  took  offense  when  we  were  attacked. 

During  his  stay  at  Saint  Cloud  he  worked  incessantly, 
and  issued  a  great  number  of  decrees  relative  to  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  new  departments  he  had  acquired  in  Italy. 
He  also  augmented  his  Council  of  State,  to  which  he  gave 
more  influence  from  day  to  day,  because  he  was  quite  sure 
of  having  it  completely  under  his  authority.  He  showed 
himself  at  the  Opera,  and  was  well  received  by  the  Parisians, 
whom,  however,  he  still  thought  cold  in  comparison  with  the 
people  of  the  provinces.  He  led  a  busy  and  laborious  life, 
sometimes  allowing  himself  the  recreation  of  hunting ;  but 
he  walked  out  for  one  hour  a  day  only,  and  received  com- 
pany on  but  one  day  in  each  week.  On  that  day  the  Come- 
die  Francaise  came  to  Saint  Cloud,  and  acted  tragedies  or 
comedies  in  a  very  pretty  theatre  which  had  been  recently 
built.  Then  began  the  difficulties  of  M.  de  Eemusat  in  pro- 
viding amusement  for  him  whom  Talleyrand  called  "the 
Unamusable."  In  vain  were  the  masterpieces  of  our  theatri- 
cal repertoire  performed ;  in  vain  did  our  best  actors  strive 
their  very  best  to  please  him :  he  generally  appeared  at  these 


ADMIRAL  NELSON.  275 

representations  preoccupied  and  weighed  down  by  the  gravity 
of  his  thoughts.  He  laid  the  blame  of  his  own  want  of  at- 
tention to  the  play  on  his  First  Chamberlain,  on  Corneille, 
on  Racine,  or  on  the  actors.  He  liked  Talma's  acting,  or 
rather  Talma  himself — there  had  been  some  sort  of  acquaint- 
ance between  them  during  his  obscure  youth ;  he  gave  him 
a  great  deal  of  money,  and  received  him  familiarly;  but 
even  Talma  could  not  succeed  in  interesting  him.  Just  like 
an  invalid,  who  blames  others  for  the  state  of  his  own  health, 
he  was  angry  with  those  who  could  enjoy  the  pleasures  that 
passed  him  by;  and  he  always  thought  that  by  scolding  and 
worrying  he  should  get  something  invented  which  would 
succeed  in  amusing  him.  The  man  who  was  intrusted  with 
Bonaparte's  pleasures  was  very  seriously  to  be  pitied ;  unfor- 
tunately for  us,  M.  de  Remusat  was  the  man,  and  I  can  not 
describe  what  he  had  to  bear. 

At  this  time  the  Emperor  was  still  flattering  himself  that 
he  would  be  able  to  gain  some  naval  triumphs  over  the  Eng- 
lish. The  united  French  and  Spanish  fleets  made  several 
efforts,  and  an  attempt  was  made  to  defend  the  colonies. 
Admiral  Kelson,  pursuing  us  everywhere,  no  doubt -upset 
the  greater  part  of  our  plans;  but  this  was  carefully  con- 
cealed, and  our  newspapers  taught  us  to  believe  that  we 
were  beating  the  English  every  day.  It  is  likely  that  the 
project  of  the  invasion  was  abandoned.  The  English  Gov- 
ernment was  raising  up  formidable  enemies  for  us  upon  the 
Continent.  The  Emperor  of  Russia,  who  was  young  and 
naturally  inclined  to  independence,  was  perhaps  already 
tempted  to  resent  the  preponderance  that  our  Emperor  de- 
sired to  exercise,  and  some  of  his  ministers  were  suspected 
of  favoring  the  English  policy,  which  aimed  at  making  him 
our  enemy.  The  peace  with  Austria  held  only  by  a  thread. 
The  King  of  Prussia  alone  seemed  resolved  to  maintain  his 
alliance  with  us.  "Why,"  said  a  note  in  the  "Moniteur," 
"  while  the  Emperor  of  Russia  exercises  his  influence  upon 
the  Porte,  should  he  object  to  that  of  France  being  exer- 


276  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

cised  upon  certain  portions  of  Italy  ?  When  with  Herschel's 
telescope  he  observes  from  the  terrace  of  his  palace  that 
which  passes  between  the  Emperor  of  the  French  and  a  few 
Apennine  populations,  why  should  he  exact  that  the  Em- 
peror of  the  French  shall  not  see  what  is  passing  in  the  an- 
cient empire  of  Solyman,  and  what  is  happening  in  Persia  ? 
It  is  the  fashion  to  accuse  France  of  ambition,  and  yet  how 
great  has  been  her  past  moderation,"  etc.,  etc. 

In  the  month  of  August  the  Emperor  set  out  for  Bou- 
logne. It  was  no  longer  his  purpose  to  inspect  the  flotillas, 
but  he  intended  to  review  that  numerous  army  encamped  in 
the  north,  which  before  long  he  was  destined  to  set  in  mo- 
tion. During  his  absence  the  Empress  made  an  excursion 
to  the  baths  of  Plombieres.  I  think  I  shall  usefully  employ 
this  interval  of  leisure  by  retracing  my  steps,  in  order  to 
mention  certain  particulars  concerning  M.  de  Talleyrand 
which  I  have  hitherto  omitted. 

Talleyrand,  who  had  come  back  to  France  some  time  be- 
fore, was  appointed  "  Minister  of  External  Relations  "  through 
the  influence  of  Mme.  de  Stael,  who  induced  Barms,  the 
Director,  to  select  him  for  that  post.*  It  was  under  the 
Directory  that  he  made  the  acquaintance  of  Mme.  Grand. 
Although  she  was  no  longer  in  her  first  youth,  this  lady,  who 
was  born  in  the  East  Indies,  was  still  remarkable  for  her 
beauty.  She  wished  to  go  to  England,  where  her  husband 
resided,  and  she  applied  to  M.  de  Talleyrand  for  a  passport. 
Her  beauty  and  her  visit  produced,  apparently,  such  an  effect 
upon  him  that  either  the  passport  was  not  given,  or  it  re- 
mained unused.  Mme.  Grand  remained  in  Paris ;  shortly 
afterward  she  was  observed  to  frequent  the  "  Hotel  of  Ex- 
ternal Belations,"  and  after  a  while  she  took  up  her  abode 
there.  Meanwhile,  Bonaparte  was  First  Consul ;  his  victo- 
ries and  his  treaties  had  brought  the  ambassadors  of  the  first 
Powers  in  Europe  and  a  crowd  of  other  foreigners  to  Paris. 

*0n  the  15th  of  July,  1797.    He  had  returned  to  France  in  September, 
1795.— P.  R. 


A  DECISIVE  INTERVIEW.  2T7 

Persons  who  were  obliged  by  their  position  to  frequent  M. 
de  Talleyrand's  society  accepted  the  presence  of  Mme.  Grand, 
who  did  the  honors  of  his  table  and  his  salon  with  a  good 
grace ;  but  they  were  somewhat  surprised  at  the  weakness 
which  had  consented  to  put  so  prominently  forward  a  woman 
who  was  indeed  handsome,  but  so  deficient  in  education  and 
so  faulty  in  temper  that  she  was  continually  annoying  Tal- 
leyrand by  her  foolish  conduct,  and  disturbing  him  by  her 
uncertain  humor.  M.  de  Talleyrand  has  a  very  good  temper, 
and  much  laisser-aller  in  the  events  of  every-day  life.  It  is 
easy  enough  to  rule  him  by  frightening  him,  because  he  hates 
a  disturbance,  and  Mme.  Grand  ruled  him  by  her  charms 
and  her  exactions.  "When,  however,  the  ambassadresses  were 
in  question,  difficulties  arose,  as  some  of  them  would  not  con- 
sent to  be  received  at  the  Hotel  of  External  Relations  by 
Mme.  Grand.  She  complained,  and  these  protests  on  both 
sides  came  to  the  ears  of  the  First  Consul. 

He  immediately  had  a  decisive  interview  on  this  subject 
with  Talleyrand,  and  informed  his  minister  that  he  must 
banish  Mme.  Grand  from  his  house.  No  sooner  had  Mme. 
Grand  been  apprised  of  this  decision,  than  she  went  to  Mme. 
Bonaparte,  whom  she  induced,  by  dint  of  tears  and  supplica- 
tions, to  procure  for  her  an  interview  with  Bonaparte.  She 
was  admitted  to  his  presence,  fell  on  her  knees,  and  entreated 
him  to  revoke  a  decree  which  reduced  her  to  despair.  Bo- 
naparte allowed  himself  to  be  moved  by  the  tears  and  sobs 
of  this  fair  personage,  and,  after  having  quieted  her,  he  said : 
"I  see  only  one  way  of  managing  this.  Let  Talleyrand 
marry  you,  and  all  will  be  arranged ;  but  you  must  bear  his 
name,  or  you  can  not  appear  in  his  house."  Mme.  Grand  was 
much  pleased  with  this  decision ;  the  Consul  repeated  it  to 
Talleyrand,  and  gave  him  twenty-four  hours  to  make  up  his 
mind.  It  is  said  that  Bonaparte  took  a  malign  pleasure  in 
making  Talleyrand  marry,  and  was  secretly  delighted  to  have 
this  opportunity  of  branding  his  character,  and  thus,  accord- 
ing to  his  favorite  system,  getting  a  guarantee  of  his  fidelity. 


278  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

It  is  very  possible  that  lie  may  have  entertained  such  an  idea ; 
it  is  also  certain  that  Mme.  Bonaparte,  over  whom  tears 
always  exercised  a  great  influence,  used  all  her  power  with 
her  husband  to  induce  him  to  favor  Mme.  Grand's  petition. 

Talleyrand  went  back  to  his  hotel,  gravely  troubled  by 
the  prompt  decision  which  was  required  of  him.  There  he 
had  to  encounter  tumultuous  scenes.  He  was  attacked  by  all 
the  devices  likely  to  exhaust  his  patience.  He  was  pressed, 
pursued,  urged  against  his  inclination.  Some  remains  of 
love,  the  power  of  habit,  perhaps  also  the  fear  of  irritating  a 
woman  whom  it  is  impossible  to  suppose  he  had  not  admitted 
to  his  confidence,  combined  to  influence  him.  He  yielded, 
set  out  for  the  country,  and  found,  in  a  village  in  the  valley 
of  Montmorency,  a  cure  who  consented  to  perform  the  mar- 
riage ceremony.  Two  days  afterward  we  were  informed  that 
Mme.  Grand  had  become  Mme.  de  Talleyrand,  and  the  diffi- 
culty of  the  Corps  Diplomatique  was  at  an  end.  It  appears 
that  M.  Grand,  who  lived  in  England,  although  little  desirous 
of  recovering  a  wife  from  whom  he  had  long  been  parted, 
contrived  to  get  himself  largely  paid  for  withholding  the 
protest  against  this  marriage  with  which  he  repeatedly  men- 
aced the  newly  wedded  couple.  M.  de  Talleyrand,  wanting 
something  to  amuse  him  in  his  own  house,  brought  over  from 
London  the  daughter  of  one  of  his  friends,  who  on  her  death- 
bed had  confided  the  child  to  him.  This  child  was  that  little 
Charlotte  who  was,  as  we  all  know,  brought  up  in  his  house, 
and  who  has  been  very  erroneously  believed  to  be  his  daugh- 
ter. He  attached  himself  strongly  to  his  young  ward,  edu- 
cated her  carefully,  and,  having  adopted  her  and  bestowed 
his  name  upon  her,  married  her  in  her  seventeenth  year  to 
his  cousin  Baron  de  Talleyrand.  The  Talleyrands  were  at 
first  justly  annoyed  by  this  marriage,  but  she  ultimately  suc- 
ceeded in  gaining  their  friendship. 

Those  persons  who  are  acquainted  with  Talleyrand,  who 
know  to  what  a  height  he  carries  delicacy  of  taste,  wit,  and 
grace  in  conversation,  and  how  much  he  needs  repose,  are 


TALLEYRAND 8  MARRIAGE.  279 

astonished  that  he  should  have  united  himself  with  a  person 
so  uncongenial  to  him.  It  is,  therefore,  most  likely  that  im- 
perative circumstances  compelled  him  to  do  so,  and  that  Bona- 
parte's command  and  the  short  time  allowed  him  in  which 
to  come  to  a  decision  prevented  a  rupture,  which  in  fact 
would  have  suited  him  much  better.  What  a  difference  it 
would  have  made  for  Talleyrand  if  he  had  then  dissolved 
this  illicit  union,  and  set  himself  to  merit  and  effect  a  future 
reconciliation  with  the  Church  he  had  abandoned !  Apart 
from  desiring  for  him  that  that  reconciliation  had  been  made 
then  in  good  faith,  how  much  consideration  would  he  have 
gained  if  afterward,  when  all  things  were  reordered  and  re- 
placed, he  had  resumed  the  Roman  purple  in  the  autumn  of 
his  days,  and  at  least  repaired  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  the 
scandal  xof  his  life !  As  a  cardinal,  a  noble,  and  a  truly  dis- 
tinguished man,  he  would  have  had  a  right  to  respect  and 
regard,  and  his  course  would  not  have  been  beset  with  em- 
barrassment and  hesitation. 

In  the  situation  in  which  he  was  placed  by  his  marriage, 
he  had  to  take  constant  precaution  to  escape,  as  far  as  pos- 
sible, from  the  ridicule  which  was  always  suspended  over 
him.  No  doubt  he  managed  better  than  others  might  have 
done  in  such  a  position.  Profound  silence  respecting  his 
private  troubles,  an  appearance  of  complete  indifference  to 
the  foolish  things  which  his  wife  was  always  saying  and  the 
blunders  which  she  was  always  making,  a  haughty  demeanor 
to  those  who  ventured  to  smile  at  him  or  at  her,  extreme 
politeness,  which  was  called  benevolence,  great  social  influ- 
ence and  political  weight,  a  large  fortune,  unalterable  pa- 
tience under  insult,  and  great  dexterity  in  taking  his  re- 
venge, were  the  weapons  with  which  he  met  the  general 
condemnation;  and,  notwithstanding  his  great  faults,  the 
public  have  never  dared  to  despise  him.  Nevertheless,  it  is 
not  to  be  supposed  that  he  has  not  paid  the  private  penalty 
of  his  imprudent  conduct.  Deprived  of  domestic  happiness, 
almost  at  variance  with  his  family,  who  could  not  associate 


280  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

with  Mme.  de  Talleyrand,  he  was  obliged  to  resort  to  an 
entirely  factitious  existence,  in  order  to  escape  from  the 
dreariness  of  his  home,  and  perhaps  from  the  bitterness  of 
his  secret  thoughts.  Public  affairs  occupied  him,  and  such 
leisure  as  they  left  him  he  gave  to  play.  He  was  always 
attended  by  a  crowd  of  followers,  and  by  giving  his  morn- 
ings to  business,  his  evenings  to  society,  and  his  nights  to 
cards,  he  never  exposed  himself  to  a  tiresome  tete-d-tete  with 
his  wife,  or  to  the  dangers  of  solitude,  which  would  have 
brought  serious  reflection.  Bent  on  getting  away  from  him- 
self, he  never  sought  sleep  until  he  was  quite  sure  that  ex- 
treme fatigue  would  enable  him  to  procure  it. 

The  Emperor  did  not  make  up  for  the  obligation  which 
he  had  imposed  on  him  by  his  conduct  to  Mme.  de  Talley- 
rand. He  treated  her  coldly,  even  rudely ;  never  admitted 
her  to  the  distinctions  of  the  rank  to  which  she  was  raised, 
without  making  a  difficulty  about  it ;  and  did  not  disguise 
the  repugnance  with  which  she  inspired  him,  even  while 
Talleyrand  still  possessed  his  entire  confidence.  Talleyrand 
bore  all  this,  never  allowed  the  slightest  complaint  to  escape 
him,  and  arranged  so  that  his  wife  should  appear  but  seldom 
at  Court.  She  received  all  distinguished  foreigners  on  cer- 
tain days,  and  on  certain  other  days  the  Government  offi- 
cials. She  made  no  visits,  none  were  exacted  from  her ;  in 
fact,  she  counted  for  nothing.  Provided  each  person  bowed 
to  her  on  entering  and  leaving  his  salon,  Talleyrand  asked 
no  more.  Let  me  say,  in  conclusion,  that  he  always  seemed 
to  bear  with  perfectly  resigned  courage  the  fatal  "tu  Vas 
voulu  "  of  Moliere's  comedy. 

In  the  course  of  these  Memoirs  I  shall  have  to  speak  of 
M.  de  Talleyrand  again,  when  I  shall  have  reached  the  pe- 
riod of  our  intimacy  with  him.* 

*  My  grandparents'  friendship  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  which  commenced  dur- 
ing the  sojourn  of  my  grandfather  at  Milan,  became  more  intimate  in  the  course 
of  the  same  year.  My  grandmother  wrote  to  her  husband  on  the  28th  of  Sep- 
tember, 1805 :  "I  have  been  really  pleased  with  the  Minister.  In  a  brief  audi- 


MME.   GRAND.  281 

I  did  not  know  Mme.  Grand  in  the  prime  of  her  life  and 
beauty,  but  I  have  heard  it  said  that  she  was  one  of  the  most 
charming  women  of  her  time.  She  was  tall,  and  her  figure 
had  all  the  suppleness  and  grace  so  common  to  women  born 
in  the  East.  *Her  complexion  was  dazzling,  her  eyes  of  the 
brightest  blue,  and  her  slightly  retrousse  nose  gave  her,  sin- 
gularly enough,  a  look  of  Talleyrand  himself.  Her  fair 
golden  hair  was  of  proverbial  beauty.  I  think  she  was  about 
thirty-six  when  she  married  M.  de  Talleyrand.  The  elegance 
of  her  figure  was  already  slightly  injured  by  her  becoming 
stout.  This  afterward  increased,  and  by  degrees  her  features 
lost  their  delicacy  and  her  complexion  became  very  red.  The 
tone  of  her  voice  was  disagreeable,  her  manners  were  abrupt ; 
she  was  of  an  unamiable  disposition,  and  so  intolerably  stupid 
that  she  never  by  any  chance  said  the  right  thing.  Talley- 
rand's intimate  friends  were  the  objects  of  her  particular  dis- 
like, and  they  cordially  detested  her.  Her  elevation  gave 
her  little  happiness,  and  what  she  had  to  suffer  never  excited 
anybody's  interest.* 

ence  which  he  gave  me  he  showed  me  much  friendship,  after  his  fashion.  You 
may  tell  him  that  he  has  been  very  amiable,  and  that  I  have  told  you  so ;  that 
never  does  any  harm.  I  said  to  him,  laughing :  '  You  must  like  my  husband 
very  much ;  that  will  not  give  you  much  trouble,  and  will  give  me  a  great  deal 
of  pleasure.'  He  told  me  that  he  did  like  you,  and  /  believe  him.  He  insists 
that  we  suffer  too  much  from  ennui  at  the  Court  not  to  be,  all  of  us,  a  little  gal- 
lant. I  said,  '/  shall  be  longer  about  becoming  so  than  the  others,  because  lam 
not  altogether  stupid,  and  intellect  is  the  surest  safeguard?  I  was  inclined  to  say 
to  him  that  he  was  not  a  proof  of  that,  and  that  I  felt  in  myself  a  much  better  de- 
fense, the  dear  and  constant  sentiment  with  which  you  have  inspired  me,  and  which 
constitutes  the  happiness  of  my  life,  even  at  this  moment,  when  it  also  causes  a 
keen  sorrow."  That  sorrow  was  absence. — P.  R. 

*  The  papal  brief  which  relieved  M.  de  Talleyrand  from  the  excommunications 
he  had  incurred  was  considered  by  him  as  a  permission  to  become  a  layman,  and 
even  to  marry,  although  nothing  of  the  kind  was  expressed  in  it.  The  reader 
may  convince  himself  on  this  point  by  reading  the  very  interesting  work  of  Sir 
Henry  Lytton  Bulwer,  which  appears  to  me  to  be  the  most  just  and  the  most 
kindly  view  that  has  yet  been  taken  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  as  regards  his  charac- 
ter, his  talent,  and  the  influence  which  he  exercised  in  Europe,  so  often  with 
great  utility  to  France.  The  author  speaks  thus  of  Talleyrand's  marriage: 


282  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B&MU8AT. 

While  the  Emperor  was  reviewing  the  whole  of  his  army, 
Mme.  Murat  went  to  Boulogne  to  pay  him  a  visit,  and  he 
desired  that  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte,  who  had  accompanied 
her  husband  to  the  baths  of  Saint  Amand,  should  also  attend 
him  there,  and  bring  her  son.  On  several  occasions  he  went 
through  the  ranks  of  his  soldiers,  carrying  this  child  in  his 
arms.  The  army  was  then  remarkably  fine,  strictly  disci- 
plined, full  of  the  best  spirit,  well  provided,  and  impatient 
for  war.  This  desire  was  destined  to  be  satisfied  before 
long. 

Notwithstanding  the  reports  in  our  newspapers,  we  were 
almost  always  stopped  in  everything  that  we  attempted  to 
do  for  the  protection  of  our  colonies.  The  proposed  inva- 
sion appeared  day  by  day  more  perilous.  It  became  neces- 
sary to  astonish  Europe  by  a  less  doubtful  novelty.  "  We 
are  no  longer,"  said  the  notes  of  the  "  Moniteur,"  addressed 
to  the  English  Government,  "  those  Frenchmen  who  were 
sold  and  betrayed  by  perfidious  ministers,  covetous  mis- 
tresses, and  indolent  kings.  You  march  toward  an  inevitable 
destiny." 

The  two  nations,  English  and  French,  each  claimed  the 
victory  in  the  naval  combat  off  Cape  Finisterre,  where  no 
doubt  our  national  bravery  opposed  a  strong  resistance  to 
the  science  of  the  enemy,  but  which  had  no  other  result  than 
to  oblige  our  fleet  to  reenter  the  port.  Shortly  afterward 
our  journals  were  full  of  complaints  of  the  insults  which 
the  flag  of  Yenice  had  sustained  since  it  had  become  a  de- 
pendency of  Austria.  We  soon  learned  that  the  Austrian 
troops  were  moving ;  that  an  alliance  between  the  Emperors 
of  Austria  and  Kussia  was  f  onned  against  us ;  and  the  Eng- 

"  The  lady  whom  he  married,  born  in  the  East  Indies,  and  separated  from 
Grand,  was  remarkable  for  her  beauty  and  for  her  lack  of  sense.  Every  one 
has  heard  the  anecdote  of  her  asking  Sir  George  Robinson  after  his  '  man  Fri- 
day.' Talleyrand,  however,  defended  his  choice  by  saying :  *  A  clever  woman 
often  compromises  her  husband ;  a  stupid  woman  only  compromises  herself.'  " 
— P.  R. 


LAST  TRACES  OF  THE  REPUBLIC.  283 

lish  journals  triumphantly  announced  a  continental  war. 
This  year  the  birthday  of  Napoleon  was  celebrated  with 
great  pomp  from  one  end  of  France  to  the  other.  He  re- 
turned from  Boulogne  on  the  3d  of  September,  and  at  that 
time  the  Senate  issued  a  decree  by  which  the  Gregorian  cal- 
endar was  to  be  resumed  on  the  1st  of  January,  1806.  Thus 
disappeared,  little  by  little,  the  last  traces  of  the  Eepublic, 
which  had  lasted,  or  appeared  to  last,  for  thirteen  years. 


CHAPTER  XIY. 

(1805.) 

M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  Fouch6— The  Emperor's  Speech  to  the  Senate— The  De- 
parture of  the  Emperor — The  Bulletins  of  the  Grand  Army — Poverty  in  Paris 
during  the  War— The  Emperor  and  the  Marshals— The  Faubourg  St.  Germain 
— Trafalgar — Journey  of  M.  de  Re"musat  to  Vienna. 

AT  the  period  of  which  I  am  writing,  M.  de  Talleyrand 
was  still  on  bad  terms  with  M.  Fouche,  and,  strange  to  say, 
I  remember  that  the  latter  charged  him  with  being  deficient 
in  conscientiousness  and  sincerity.  He  always  remembered 
that  on  the  occasion  of  the  attempt  of  the  3d  Mvose  (the 
infernal  machine)  Talleyrand  had  accused  him  to  Bonaparte 
of  neglect,  and  had  contributed  not  a  little  to  his  dismissal. 
On  his  return  to  the  Ministry  he  secretly  nursed  his  resent- 
ment, and  let  slip  no  opportunity  of  gratifying  it,  by  that 
bitter  and  cynical  mockery  which  was  the  habitual  tone  of 
his  conversation. 

Talleyrand  and  Fouche  were  two  very  remarkable  men, 
and  both  were  exceedingly  useful  to  Bonaparte.  But  it 
would  be  difficult  to  find  less  resemblance  and  fewer  points 
of  contact  between  any  two  persons  placed  in  such  close  and 
continuous  relations.  The  former  had  studiously  preserved 
the  carelessly  resolute  manner,  if  I  may  use  that  expression, 
of  the  nobles  of  the  old  regime.  Acute,  taciturn,  measured 
in  his  speech,  cold  in  his  bearing,  pleasing  in  conversation, 
deriving  all  his  power  from  himself  alone — for  he  held  no 
party  in  his  hand — his  very  faults,  and  even  the  stigma  of 
his  abandonment  of  his  former  sacred  state  of  life,  were  suf- 


M.  DE  TALLEYRAND  AND  M.  FOUCHfi.  285 

ficient  guarantee  to  the  Eevolutionists,  who  knew  him  to  be 
so  adroit  and  so  supple  that  they  believed  him  to  be  always 
keeping  the  means  of  escaping  them  in  reserve.  Besides, 
he  opened  his  mind  to  no  one.  He  was  quite  impenetrable 
upon  the  affairs  with  which  he  was  charged,  and  upon  his 
own  opinion  of  the  master  whom  he  served ;  and,  as  a  final 
touch  to  this  picture,  he  neglected  nothing  for  his  own  com- 
fort, was  careful  in  his  dress,  used  perfumes,  and  was  a 
lover  of  good  cheer  and  all  the  pleasures  of  the  senses.  He 
was  never  subservient  to  Bonaparte,  but  he  knew  how  to 
make  himself  necessary  to  him,  and  never  flattered  him  in 
public. 

Fouche,  on  the  contrary,  was  a  genuine  product  of  the 
Revolution.  Careless  of  his  appearance,  he  wore  the  gold 
lace  and  the  ribbons  which  were  the  insignia  of  his  dignities 
as  if  he  disdained  to  arrange  them.  He  could  laugh  at  him- 
self on  occasion :  he  was  active,  animated,  always  restless ; 
talkative,  affecting  a  sort  of  frankness  which  was  merely  the 
last  degree  of  deceit ;  boastful ;  disposed  to  seek  the  opinion 
of  others  upon  his  conduct  by  talking  about  it ;  and  sought 
no  justification  except  in  his  contempt  of  a  certain  class  of 
morality,  or  his  carelessness  of  a  certain  order  of  approba- 
tion. But  he  carefully  maintained,  to  Bonaparte's  occasional 
disquiet,  relations  with  a  party  whom  the  Emperor  felt  him- 
self obliged  to  conciliate  in  his  person.  With  all  this,  Fouche 
was  not  deficient  in  a  sort  of  good  fellowship ;  he  had  even 
some  estimable  qualities.  He  was  a  good  husband  to  an 
ugly  and  stupid  wife,  and  a  very  good,  even  a  too-indulgent, 
father.  He  looked  at  revolution  as  a  whole ;  he  hated  small 
schemes  and  constantly  recurring  suspicions,  and  it  was  be- 
cause this  was  his  way  of  thinking  that  his  police  did  not 
suffice  for  the  Emperor.  Where  Fouche  recognized  merit, 
he  did  it  justice.  It  is  not  recorded  of  him  that  he  was 
guilty  of  any  personal  revenge,  nor  did  he  show  himself 
capable  of  persistent  jealousy.  It  is  even  likely  that,  al- 
though he  remained  for  several  years  an  enemy  of  Talley- 


286  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

rand's,  it  was  less  because  he  had  reason  to  complain  of  him 
than  because  the  Emperor  took  pains  to  keep  up  a  division 
between  two  men  whose  friendship  he  thought  dangerous  to 
himself ;  and,  indeed,  it  was  when  they  were  reconciled  that 
he  began  to  distrust  them  both,  and  to  exclude  them  from 
affairs. 

In  1805  Talleyrand  stood  much  higher  in  favor  than 
Fouehe.  The  business  in  hand  was  to  found  a  monarchy, 
to  impose  it  upon  Europe  and  upon  France  by  skillful  diplo- 
macy and  the  pomp  of  a  Court ;  and  the  ci-devcmt  noble  was 
much  fitter  to  advise  upon  all  these  points.  He  had  an  im- 
mense reputation  in  Europe.  He  was  known  to  hold  con- 
servative opinions,  and  that  was  all  the  morality  demanded 
by  the  foreign  sovereigns.  The  Emperor,  in  order  to  inspire 
confidence  in  his  enterprise,  needed  to  have  his  signature 
supported  by  that  of  his  Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs.  So 
necessary  to  his  projects  did  he  consider  this  that  he  did 
not  grudge  the  distinction.  The  agitation  which  reigned  in 
Europe  at  the  moment  when  the  rupture  with  Austria  and 
Russia  took  place  called  for  very  frequent  consultations  be- 
tween the  Emperor  and  M.  de  Talleyrand  ;  and,  when  Bona- 
parte left  Paris  to  commence  the  campaign,  the  Minister 
established  himself  at  Strasburg,  so  that  'he  might  be  able  to 
reach  the  Emperor  when  the  French  cannon  should  announce 
that  the  hour  of  negotiations  had  arrived. 

About  the  middle  of  September  rumors  of  an  approach- 
ing departure  were  spread  at  Saint  Cloud.  M.  de  Remusat 
received  orders  to  repair  to  Strasburg,  and  there  to  prepare 
the  Imperial  lodgings ;  and  the  Empress  declared  so  de- 
cidedly her  intention  of  following  her  husband  that  it  was 
settled  she  should  go  to  Strasburg  with  him.  A  numerous 
Court  was  to  accompany  them.  As  my  husband  was  going, 
I  should  have  been  very  glad  to  accompany  him,  but  I  was 
becoming  more  and  more  of  an  invalid,  and  was  not  in  a 
state  to  travel.  I  was  therefore  obliged  to  submit  to  this 
new  separation,  a  more  sorrowful  one  than  the  former.  This 


THE  EMPERORS  SPEECH  TO   THE  SENATE.      287 

was  the  first  time  since  I  had  been  at  the  Court  that  I  had 
seen  the  Emperor  setting  out  for  the  army.  The  dangers  to 
which  he  was  about  to  be  exposed  revived  all  my  former 
attachment  to  him.  I  had  not  courage  to  reproach  him  with 
anything  when  I  saw  him  depart  on  so  serious  a  mission ; 
and  the  thought  that,  of  many  persons  who  were  going, 
there  would  no  doubt  be  some  whom  I  should  never  see 
again,  brought  tears  to  my  eyes,  and  made  my  heart  sink. 
In  the  glittering  salon  of  Saint  Cloud  I  saw  wives  and 
mothers  in  terror  and  anguish,  who  did  not  dare  to  let  their 
grief  be  seen,  so  great  was  the  fear  of  displeasing  the  Em- 
peror. The  officers  affected  carelessness,  but  that  was  the 
necessary  bravado  of  their  profession.  At  that  time,  how- 
ever, there  were  a  great  many  of  them  who,  having  attained 
a  sufficient  fortune,  and  being  unable  to  foresee  the  almost 
gigantic  height  to  which  the  continuity  of  war  was  afterward 
to  raise  them,  were  very  sorry  to  relinquish  the  pleasant  and 
quiet  life  which  they  had  now  led  for  some  years. 

Throughout  France  the  law  of  the  conscription  was 
strictly  carried  out,  and  this  caused  some  disturbance  in  the 
provinces.  The  fresh  laurels  which  our  army  was  about  to 
acquire  were  regarded  with  indifference.  But  the  soldiers 
and  subalterns  were  full  of  hope  and  ardor,  and  rushed  to 
the  frontiers  with  eagerness,  a  presage  of  success. 

On  the  20th  of  September  the  following  appeared  in  the 
"Moniteur": 

"The  Emperor  of  Germany,  without  previous  negotia- 
tion or  explanation,  and  without  any  declaration  of  war,  has 
invaded  Bavaria.  The  Elector  has  retreated  to  Warzburg, 
where  the  whole  Bavarian  army  is  assembled." 

On  the  23d  the  Emperor  repaired  to  the  Senate,  and  issued 
a  decree  calling  out  the  reserves  of  the  conscripts  of  five  years' 
standing.  Berthier,  the  Minister  of  "War,  read  a  report  on 
the  impending  war,  and  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  demon- 
strated the  necessity  of  employing  the  National  Guard  to 
protect  the  coasts. 
23 


288  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

The  Emperor's  speech  was  simple  and  impressive  ;-it  was 
generally  approved.  Our  causes  of  complaint  against  Austria 
were  fully  set  forth  in  the  "  Moniteur."  There  is  little  .doubt 
that  England,  if  not  afraid,  was  at  least  weary  of  the  stay  of 
our  troops  on  the  coast,  and  that  it  was  her  policy  to  raise 
up  enemies  for  us  on  the  Continent,  while  the  division  of 
the  kingdom  of  Italy,  and  still  more  its  union  with  the  French 
Empire,  was  sufficiently  disquieting  to  the  Austrian  Cabinet. 
Without  a  knowledge  of  the  diplomatic  secrets  of  the  period, 
which  I  do  not  possess,  it  is  hard  to  understand  why  the 
Emperor  of  Russia  broke  with  us.  It  is  probable  that  com- 
mercial difficulties  were  making  him  anxious  about  his  rela- 
tions with  England.  It  may  be  well  to  quote  some  words  of 
Napoleon's  on  this  subject.  "  The  Emperor  Alexander,"  he 
said,  "  is  a  young  man ;  he  longs  for  a  taste  of  glory,  and, 
like  all  children,  he  wants  to  go  a  different  way  from  that 
which  his  father  followed."  Neither  can  I  explain  the  neu- 
trality of  the  King  of  Prussia,  which  was  so  advantageous  to 
us,  and  to  himself  so  fatal,  since  it  did  but  delay  his  over- 
throw for  one  year.  It  seems  to  me  that  Europe  blundered. 
The  Emperor's  character  should  have  been  better  appreciated ; 
and  there  should  have  been  either  a  clear  understanding  that 
he  must  be  always  yielded  to,  or  he  should  have  been  put 
down  by  general  consent  at  the  outset  of  his  career. 

Eut  I  must  return  to  my  narrative,  from  which  I  have 
digressed  in  order  to  treat  of  a  subject  beyond  my  pow- 
ers. 

I  passed  the  last  few  days  preceding  the  Emperor's  de- 
parture at  Saint  Cloud.  The  Emperor  worked  unremit- 
tingly; when  over-fatigued,  he  would  lie  down  for  a  few 
hours  in  the  daytime,  but  would  rise  in  the  middle  of  the 
night  and  go  on  with  his  labors.  He  was,  however,  more 
serene  and  gracious  than  at  other  times  ;  he  received  com- 
pany as  usual,  went  occasionally  to  the  theatres,  and  did  not 
forget,  when  he  was  at  Strasburg,  to  send  a  present  to 
Fleury,  the  actor,  who,  two  days  before  his  departure,  had 


DEPARTURE  OF  THE  EMPEROR.  289 

performed   Corneille's  "Menteur,"  by  which   he  had  suc- 
ceeded in  amusing  the  Emperor. 

The  Empress  was  as  full  of  confidence  as  the  wife  of 
Bonaparte  would  naturally  be.  Happy  to  be  allowed  to 
accompany  him  and  to  escape  from  the  talk  of  Paris,  which 
alarmed  her,  from  the  spying  of  her  brothers-in-law,  and  the 
monotony  of  Saint  Cloud,  delighted  with  the  fresh  oppor- 
tunity for  display,  she  looked  on  a  campaign  as  on  a  journey, 
and  maintained  a  composure  which,  as  it  could  not  by  reason 
of  her  position  proceed  from  indifference,  was  a  genuine 
compliment  to  him  whom  she  firmly  believed  fortune  would 
not  dare  to  forsake.  Louis  Bonaparte,  who  was  in  bad 
health,  was  to  remain  in  Paris,  and  had  received  orders,  as 
had  also  his  wife,  to  entertain  liberally  in  the  absence  of  the 
Emperor.  Joseph  presided  over  the  Administrative  Council 
of  the  Senate.  He  resided  at  the  Luxembourg,  where  he 
was  also  to  hold  a  Court.  Princess  Borghese  was  recovering 
her  health  at  Trianon.  Mme.  Murat  withdrew  to  Neuilly, 
where  she  occupied  herself  in  beautifying  her  charming 
dwelling ;  Murat  accompanied  the  Emperor  to  headquarters. 
M.  de  Talleyrand  was  to  remain  at  Strasburg  until  further 
orders.  M.  Maret  attended  the  Emperor;  he  was  the  au- 
thor-in-chief of  the  bulletins. 

On  the  24th  the  Emperor  set  out,  and  he  reached  Stras- 
burg without  stopping  on  the  way. 

I  returned  in  low  spirits  to  Paris,  where  I  rejoined  my 
children,  my  mother,  and  my  sister.  I  found  the  latter 
much  distressed  by  her  separation  from  M.  de  Nansouty, 
who  was  in  command  of  a  division  of  cavalry. 

Immediately  on  the  departure  of  the  Emperor,  rumors 
became  rife  in  Paris  of  an  intended  invasion  of  the  coast, 
and,  in  fact,  such  an  expedition  might  have  been  attempted  ; 
but,  fortunately,  our  enemies  were  not  quite  so  audacious 
and  enterprising  as  ourselves,  and  at  that  time  the  English 
had  not  such  confidence  in  their  army  as  since  then  it  has 
justly  inspired. 


290  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

The  tightening  of  the  money-market  began  almost  imme- 
diately to  be  felt :  in  a  short  time  payment  at  the  Bank  was 
suspended;  money  fetched  a  very  high  price.  I  heard  it 
said  that  our  export  trade  did  not  suffice  for  our  wants; 
that  war  had  stopped  it,  and  was  raising  the  price  of  all  our 
imports.  This,  I  was  told,  was  the  cause  of  the  sudden  em- 
barrassment which  had  come  upon  us. 

Special  and  personal  anxieties  were  added  to  the  general 
depression.  Many  families  of  distinction  had  sons  in  the 
army,  and  trembled  for  their  fate.  In  what  suspense  did 
not  parents  await  the  arrival  of  bulletins  which  might  sud- 
denly apprise  them  of  the  loss  of  those  most  dear  to  them  ! 
What  agonies  did  not  Bonaparte  inflict  on  women,  on  moth- 
ers, during  many  years !  He  has  sometimes  expressed  aston- 
ishment at  the  hatred  he  at  last  inspired ;  but  could  he  expect 
to  be  forgiven  such  agonized  and  prolonged  suspense,  so  much 
weeping,  so  many  sleepless  nights,  and  days  of  agonizing 
dread  3  If  he  had  but  admitted  the  truth,  he  must  have  known 
there  is  not  one  natural  feeling  on  which  he  had  not  trampled. 

Before  his  departure,  and  in  order  to  gratify  the  nobles, 
he  created  what  was  called  the  Guard  of  Honor.  He  gave 
the  command  to  his  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies.  It  was 
almost  funny  to  see  poor  M.  de  Segur's  zeal  in  forming  his 
Guard,  the  eagerness  displayed  by  certain  great  personages  to 
obtain  admittance  into  it,  and  the  anxiety  of  some  of  the 
chamberlains,  who  imagined  the  Emperor  would  much  ad- 
mire the  change  of  their  red  coats  for  a  military  uniform.  I 
shall  never  forget  the  surprise,  nay,  the  fright  which  M.  de 
Lugay,  Prefect  of  the  Palace,  a  mild  and  timid  person,  gave 
me,  when  he  asked  me  whether  M.  de  Remusat,  the  father 
of  a  family,  a  former  magistrate,  and  at  that  time  more  than 
forty  years  of  age,  did  not  also  intend  to  embrace  the  mili- 
tary career  thus  suddenly  opened  to  everybody.  "We  were 
beginning  to  be  accustomed  to  so  many  strange  things  that, 
in  spite  of  sense  and  reason,  I  felt  some  solicitude  on  this 
subject,  and  I  wrote  to  my  husband,  who  replied  that  he 


BULLETINS  OF  THE  GRAND  ARMY.  291 

had  not  been  seized  with  martial  ardor,  and  that  he  hoped 
the  Emperor  might  still  reckon  among  his  servants  some  who 
did  not  wear  swords. 

'  At  this  time  the  Emperor  had  partly  restored  us  to  favor. 
On  his  departure  from  Strasburg  he  confided  the  entire 
charge  of  the  Court  and  the  Empress's  household  to  my 
husband.  These  were  sufficiently  easy  duties,  with  no  great- 
er drawback  than  a  certain  amount  of  tedium.  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand, who  also  remained  behind  at  Strasburg,  gave  some 
zest  to  the  daily  routine  of  M.  de  Kemusat's  life.  They  now 
became  really  intimate,  and  were  frequently  together.  M. 
de  Remusat,  who  was  by  nature  simple,  modest,  and  retir- 
ing, showed  to  advantage  as  he  became  better  known,  and 
M.  de  Talleyrand  recognized  his  intellectual  qualities,  his 
excellent  judgment,  and  his  uprightness.  He  began  to  trust 
him,  to  appreciate  the  safety  of  intercourse  with  him,  and  to 
treat  him  as  a  friend;  while  my  husband,  who  was  gratified 
by  receiving  such  overtures  from  a  quarter  whence  he  had 
not  expected  them,  conceived  for  him  from  that  moment  an 
affection  which  no  subsequent  vicissitude  has  lessened. 

Meanwhile  the  Emperor  had  left  Strasburg.  On  the  1st 
of  October  he  commenced  the  campaign,  and  the  entire  army, 
transported  as  if  by  magic  from  Boulogne,  was  crossing  the 
frontier.  The  Elector  of  Bavaria,  on  being  called  upon  by 
the  Emperor  of  Austria  to  afford  free  passage  to  his  troops, 
refused  to  do  so,  and  was  being  invaded  on  every  side ;  but 
Bonaparte  marched  to  his  aid  without  delay. 

We  then  received  the  first  bulletin  from  the  Grand  Army. 
It  announced  a  first  success  at  Donauworth,  and  gave  us  the 
proclamations  of  the  Emperor,  and  that  of  the  Viceroy  of 
Italy.  Massena  was  ordered  to  reenforce  the  latter,  and  to 
push  into  the  Tyrol  with  the  united  French  and  Italian 
armies.  To  phrases  well  calculated  to  inflame  the  zeal  of 
our  soldiers  were  added  others  of  biting  sarcasm  against  our 
enemy.  A  circular  addressed  to  the  inhabitants  of  Austria, 
asking  for  contributions  of  lint,  was  published,  accompanied 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

by  the  following  note :  "  "We  hope  the  Emperor  of  Austria 
will  not  require  any,  as  he  has  gone  back  to  Vienna." 

Insults  to  the  ministers  were  not  spared,  nor  to  some  of 
the  great  Austrian  nobles,  among  whom  was  the  Count  de 
Colloredo,  who  was  accused  of  being  governed  by  his  wife, 
herself  entirely  devoted  to  English  policy.  These  unworthy 
attacks  occurred  promiscuously  in  the  bulletins,  among  really 
elevated  sentiments,  which,  although  put  forth  with  Roman 
rather  than  with  French  eloquence,  were  very  effective. 

Bonaparte's  activity  in  this  campaign  was  positively  mar- 
velous. From  the  beginning  he  foresaw  the  advantages  that 
would  accrue  to  him  from  the  first  blunders  of  the  Austrians, 
and  also  his  ultimate  success.  Toward  the  middle  of  October 
he  wrote  to  his  wife :  "  Rest  easy ;  I  promise  you  the  shortest 
and  most  brilliant  of  campaigns." 

At  Wertingen  our  cavalry  obtained  some  advantage  over 
the  enemy,  and  M.  de  Nansouty  distinguished  himself.  A 
brilliant  skirmish  also  took  place  at  Giinzburg,  and  the  Aus- 
trians were  soon  retreating  from  every  point. 

The  army  became  more  and  more  enthusiastic,  and  seemed 
to  take  no  heed  of  the  approach  of  winter.  Just  before  going 
into  action,  the  Emperor  harangued  his  soldiers  on  the  Lech 
bridge,  in  the  midst  of  thickly  falling  snow.  "  But,"  con- 
tinued the  bulletin,  "  his  words  were  of  fire,  and  the  soldiers 
forgot  their  privations."  The  bulletin  ended  with  these  pro- 
phetic words :  "  The  destinies  of  the  campaign  are  fixed."  * 

*  The  actual  text  of  the  fifth  bulletin  from  the  Grand  Army  is  as  follows : 
"  Augsburg,  20th  Vendemiaire,  year  14  (12th  October,  1805).  The  Emperor  was 
on  the  Lech  bridge  when  the  division  under  General  Marmont  defiled  past  him. 
He  ordered  each  regiment  to  form  in  circle,  and  spoke  to  them  of  the  enemy's 
position,,  of  the  imminence  of  a  great  battle,  and  of  his  confidence  in  them.  He 
made  this  speech  in  the  most  severe  weather.  Snow  was  falling  thick,  the  troops 
stood  in  mud  up  to  their  knees,  and  the  cold  was  intense;  but  the  Emperor's 
words  were  of  fire,  and  while  listening  to  him  the  soldiers  forgot  their  fatigue 
and  their  privations,  and  were  impatient  for  the  moment  of  battle.  Never  can 
great  events  have  been  decided  in  a  shorter  time.  In  less  than  a  fortnight  the 
destinies  of  the  campaign,  and  of  the  Austrian,  and  Russian  armies,  will  be 
fixed."— P.  R. 


PO  VERTY  IN  PARIS.  293 

The  taking  of  Ulm  and  the  capitulation  of  its  immense 
garrison  completed  the  surprise  and  terror  of  Austria,  and 
served  to  silence  the  factious  spirit  in  Paris,  which  had  been 
with  difficulty  repressed  by  the  police.  It  is  hard  to  prevent 
Frenchmen  from  ranging  themselves  on  the  side  of  glory, 
and  we  began  to  share  .in  that  which  our  army  was  gaining. 
But  the  monetary  difficulty  was  still  painfully  felt;  trade 
suffered,  the  theatres  were  empty,  an  increase  of  poverty 
was  perceptible,  and  the  only  hope  that  sustained  us  was 
that  a  campaign  so  brilliant  must  be  followed  by  an  imme- 
diate peace. 

After  the  capitulation  of  Ulm,  the  Emperor  himself  dic- 
tated the  following  phrase  in  the  bulletin :  "  The  panegyric 
of  the  army  may  be  pronounced  in  two  words :  It  is  worthy 
of  its  leader."  *  He  wrote  to  the  Senate,  sending  the  colors 
taken  from  the  enemy,  and  announcing  that  the  Elector  had 
returned  to  his  capital.  Letters  from  him  to  the  bishops, 
requesting  them  to  offer  thanksgiving  for  our  victories,  were 
also  published. 

From  the  very  beginning  of  the  campaign  pastoral  letters 
had  been  read  in  every  metropolitan  church,  justifying  the 
war,  and  encouraging  the  new  recruits  to  march  promptly 
whithersoever  they  should  be  called.  The  bishops  now  be- 
gan the  task  once  more,  and  exhausted  the  Scriptures  for 
texts  to  prove  that  the  Emperor  was  protected  by  the  God 
of  armies."  f 

*  These  words  are,  in  fact,  to  be  found  in  the  sixth  bulletin  from  the  Grand 
Army,  dated  Elchingen,  26th  Vend6miaire,  year  14  (18th  October,  1805).— P.  R. 

f  The  extreme  subservience  shown  by  the  clergy  toward  the  Emperor  was 
not  sufficient  in  his  eyes,  if  we  may  judge  by  the  following  letter,  which  he 
addressed  to  Fouche"  during  the  campaign:  "4th  Nivose,  year  14  (25th  Decem- 
ber, 1805).  I  perceive  some  difficulty  on  the  subject  of  reading  out  the  bulletins 
in  churches ;  I  do  not  consider  this  advisable.  It  would  only  give  more  im- 
portance to  priests  than  is  their  due ;  for  it  gives  them  a  right  of  comment,  and, 
should  the  news  be  bad,  they  would  not  fail  to  remark  on  it.  It  is  thus  because 
there  are  no  fixed  principles :  now  there  are  to  be  no  priests  at  all,  again  there 
are  to  be  too  many ;  all  this  must  come  to  an  end.  M.  Portalis  was  wrong  to 
write  his  letter  without  knowing  my  intentions  on  the  subject." — P.  R. 


294  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

Joseph  Bonaparte  was  the  bearer  of  his  brother's  letter 
to  the  Senate.  That  body  decreed  that,  in  reply,  an  address 
of  congratulation  should  be  carried  to  headquarters  by  a  cer- 
tain number  of  its  members. 

At  Strasburg  the  Empress  received  a  number  of  German 
princes,  who  came  to  join  her  Court^  and  to  offer  her  their 
homage  and  congratulations.  With  a  natural  pride  she 
showed  them  the  Emperor's  letters,  in  which  long  before- 
hand he  announced  to  her  the  victories  he  was  about  to 
gain;  and  either  his  skillful  foresight  must  needs  be  ad- 
mired, or  else  the  power  of  a  destiny  which  never  for  a 
moment  belied  itself  must  be  recognized. 

Marshal  Ney  distinguished  himself  at  Elchingen,  and  the 
Emperor  consented  so  fully  to  leave  the  honors  of  the  occa- 
sion to  him  that  afterward,  when  he  created  dukes,  he  de- 
sired that  the  Marshal's  title  should  be  Duke  of  Elchingen. 

I  use  the  word  consented,  because  it  is  admitted  that 
Bonaparte  was  not  always  perfectly  just  in  apportioning 
the  fame  which  he  accorded  to  his  generals.  In  one  of  his 
occasional  fits  of  frankness,  I  heard  him  say  that  he  liked  to 
bestow  glory  only  on  those  who  knew  not  how  to  sustain  it. 
According  to  his  policy  with  respect  to  the  military  chiefs 
under  his  orders,  or  the  degree  of  confidence  which  he  placed 
in  them,  he  would  either  preserve  silence  concerning  certain 
victories  of  theirs,  or  change  the  blunder  of  a  particular 
marshal  into  a  success.  A  general  would  hear  through  some 
bulletin  of  an  action  which  had  never  taken  place,  or  of  a 
speech  which  he  had  never  made.  Another  would  find  him- 
self famous  in  the  newspapers,  and  would  wonder  how  he 
had  deserved  to  be  thus  distinguished.  Others  would  en- 
deavor to  protest  against  his  neglect  of  them,  or  against 
distorted  accounts  of  events.  But  how  was  it  possible  to 
correct  what  had  once  been  read,  and  was  already  effaced  by 
more  recent  news  ?  For  Bonaparte's  rapidity  in  war  gave 
us  daily  something  fresh  to  learn.  On  these  occasions  he 
would  either  impose  silence  on  the  protest,  or,  if  he  wished 


THE  EMPFROR  AND   TEE  MARSHALS.  295 

to  appease  the  offended  officer,  a  sum  of  money,  a  prize  from 
the  enemy,  or  permission  to  levy  a  tax  was  granted  to  him, 
and  thus  the  affair  would  end. 

This  crafty  spirit,  which  was  inherent  in  Bonaparte's 
character,  and  which  he  employed  adroitly  in  dealing  with 
his  marshals  and  superior  officers,  may  be  justified,  up  to  a 
certain  point,  by  the  difficulty  he  occasionally  met  with  in 
managing  so  large  a  number  of  individuals  of  widely  differ- 
ing characters  but  similar  aims.  He  was  perfectly  cognizant 
of  the  scope  of  their  various  talents ;  he  knew  in  what  man- 
ner each  of  them  might  be  useful  to  him  :  while  rewarding 
their  services  he  was  perpetually  obliged  to  repress  their 
pride  and  jealousy.  He  was  forced  to  use  every  means  in 
his  power  to  secure  his  own  success ;  above  all,  he  could  miss 
no  opportunity  of  making  them  feel  their  entire  dependence 
on  himself,  and  that  their  renown  as  well  as  their  fortune  was 
in  his  hands  alone.*  This  point  once  reached,  he  might 

*  I  find  among  my  father's  papers  a  note  which  further  develops  what  is 
said  here  concerning  the  marshals-  of  the  Empire:  "The  Emperor  took  the 
utmost  license  in  composing  his  bulletins,  seeking  especially  to  eclipse  all  the 
others,  and  to  establish  his  own  infallibility  ;  then  considering  the  kind  of  effect 
he  wished  to  produce  on  foreigners  and  on  the  public  in  France ;  and,  lastly, 
having  regard  to  his  intentions  and  his  good  or  ill  will  toward  his  lieutenants. 
Truth  came  a  long  way  behind  all  these  things.  Nothing  could  equal  the  sur- 
prise of  his  officers  on  reading  the  bulletins  which  came  back  to  them  from 
Paris ;  but  they  made  few  complaints.  The  Emperor  is,  like  the  Convention 
and  Louis  XIV.,  one  of  the  few  powers  able  to  subdue  and  to  discipline  the 
vanity  of  subordinates. 

"  The  Emperor  praised  the  great  generals  of  his  time  but  little.  Military 
men  are  more  jealous  of  each  other  than  those  of  any  other  profession ;  they 
are  the  least  to  be  relied  on  in  their  estimation  of  each  other.  They  are  dis- 
couraging or  irritating  when  judging  one  of  another.  To  this  natural  jealousy 
the  Emperor  added  the  calculations  of  a  despot  who  will  have  no  one  of  impor- 
tance except  himself.  Desaix  is  the  only  man  of  whom  he  spoke  with  any 
enthusiasm,  and  he  knew  him  only  at  the  opening  of  his  career  of  power.  He 
always  continued,  I  believe,  to  treat  him  well,  but  Desaix  died  [at  Marengo, 
June  14,  1800].  His  comments  on  his  lieutenants,  in  the  beginning  of  his  nar- 
rative of  the  first  campaign  in  Italy,  are  remarkable,  and  their  severity  has  no 
appearance  of  jealousy.  Generally  he  spoke  of  the  marshals  with  a  not  very 
flattering  freedom.  In  his  correspondence  with  King  Joseph  we  may  read  what 


296  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

feel  certain  not  to  be  importuned  by  them,  and  to  be  at 
liberty  to  reward  their  services  at  his  own  price.  In  general, 
however,  the  marshals  have  had  no  cause  to  complain  that 
he  did  not  rate  them  highly.  The  rewards  obtained  by  them 
were  frequently  gigantic ;  and,  the  long  continuance  of  war 
having  raised  their  hopes  to  the  highest  pitch,  we  have  seen 
them  become  dukes  and  princes  without  being  astonished  at 
the  fact,  and  end  by  thinking  that  royalty  alone  could  wor- 
thily crown  their  destiny.  Enormous  sums  were  divided 
among  them,  and  every  kind  of  -exaction  from  the  van- 
quished was  permitted  them ;  some  of  them  made  immense 
fortunes,  and,  if  most  of  these  disappeared  with  the  Govern- 
ment .under  which  they  had  been  amassed,  it  was  because 

he  said  of  Mass6na,  Jourdan,  and  some  others.  General  Foy  told  me  that  he 
had  heard  him  say  of  Soult,  *  He  can  array  a  battle  well,  but  is  incapable  of 
fighting  one.'  Then  he  would  dwell  on  the  exactions,  the  pretensions,  the  am- 
bition, and  the  cupidity  of  his  marshals.  *  No  one  knows,'  he  said  to  M.  Pas- 
quier,  '  what  it  is  to  have  to  deal  with  two  such  men  as  Soult  and  Ney.'  His 
lieutenants  frequently  paid  him  back,  in  their  conversations,  what  he  had  said 
concerning  them.  It  was  not  in  the  army,  especially  during  the  campaigns  that 
followed  that  of  Austerlitz,  that  he  was  chiefly  held  in  admiration,  esteem,  and 
affection.  He  had,  as  it  were,  an  off-hand  way  of  making  war.  He  neglected 
many  things,  and  risked  many.  He  sacrificed  everything  to  his  personal  success. 
Becoming  more  and  more  confident  in  his  destiny,  and  in  the  terror  inspired  by 
his  presence,  his  only  thought  was  to  repair  any  blunders,  checks,  or  losses  by 
decisive  blows  struck  with  his  own  hand.  He  was  always  resolute  in  denying  or 
in  preserving  silence  concerning  anything  which  might  injure  him.  This  ren- 
dered the  service  unbearable  to  those  generals  who  were  at  a  distance  from 
himself.  They  retained  all  their  responsibility,  were  often  without  the  neces- 
sary means  of  action,  and  received  only  orders  impossible  to  execute,  and  which 
were  intended  to  put  them  in  the  wrong.  They  accused  him  consequently  of 
selfishness,  of  injustice,  of  perfidy,  and  even  of  malice  toward  them,  or  of  envy. 
Barante  has  told  me  that,  when  the  auditors  arrived  at  the  army,  they  were  con- 
founded at  what  they  heard  said  among  the  staff,  and  sometimes  even  at  head- 
quarters. He  himself,  when  attached  to  the  staff  of  Marshal  Lannes — during 
the  campaign  of  Poland,  I  believe — heard  him  frequently  say  at  his  own  table 
that  the  Emperor,  being  jealous  of  him  and  eager  to  ruin  him,  gave  him  orders 
with  this  end  in  view  ;  and  once,  when  suffering  from  internal  pain,  he  went  so 
far  as  to  say  the  Emperor  had  tried  to  have  him  poisoned."  I  have  quoted  the 
whole  of  this  interesting  passage  ;  but  it  is  evident  that  all  this  was  in  embryo 
at  the  time  of  the  campaign  of  1805. — P.  R. 


A  SOLEMN  TE  DEUM.  297 

they  had  been  acquired  so  easily  that  their  upstart  possessors 
naturally  spent  them  lavishly,  feeling  confident  that  the  fa- 
cilities for  making  such  fortunes  would  never  be  exhausted. 

In  this  first  campaign  of  Napoleon's  reign,  although  the 
army  was  as  yet  subject  to  a  discipline  which  was  afterward 
considerably  relaxed,  the  vanquished  people  found  themselves 
a  prey  to  the  rapacity  of  the  conqueror,  and  the  obligation  of 
receiving  some  field  officer  for  a  single  night,  or  even  for  a 
few  hours,  cost  many  a  great  Austrian  noble  or  prince  the 
entire  destruction  and  pillage  of  his  home.  The  common 
soldiers  were  under  discipline,  and  there  was  an  outward  ap- 
pearance of  order,  but  there  was  nothing  to  hinder  a  marshal 
from  taking  away  with  him,  on  his  departure,  any  objects 
which  had  caught  his  fancy.  After  the  close  of  the  war,  I 

have  often  heard  the  wife  of  Marshal  X relate,  with 

laughter,  that  her  husband,  knowing  her  taste  for  music,  had 
sent  her  an  immense  collection  of  music-books,  which  he  had 
found  in  some  German  prince's  house ;  and  she  would  add, 
with  equal  ingenuousness,  that  he  had  dispatched  so  many 
packing-cases  full  of  lusters  and  Vienna  glass,  which  he  had 
picked  up  in  every  direction,  to  their  house  in  Paris,  that  she 
was  quite  at  a  loss  to  know  where  to  put  them. 

While  the  Emperor  knew  so  well  how  to  hold  the  preten- 
sions of  his  generals  in  check,  he  spared  no  pains  to  encourage 
and  satisfy  the  rank  and  file.  After  the  taking  of  Ulm,  a 
decree  was  issued  to  the  effect  that  the  month  of  Yende- 
miaire,  which  was  just  closed,  should  in  itself  be  reckoned  as 
a  campaign. 

On  the  feast  of  All  Saints  a  solemn  Te  Dewm  was  sung 
at  Notre  Dame,  and  Joseph  gave  several  entertainments  in 
honor  of  our  victories. 

Meanwhile  Masse*na  was  distinguishing  himself  by  vic- 
tories in  Italy,  and  it  soon  became  certain  that  the  Emperor 
of  Austria  would  have  to  pay  dearly  for  this  great  campaign. 
The  Russian  army  was  hastening  by  forced  marches  to  his 
aid,  but  had  not  yet  joined  the  Austrians,  who  meanwhile 


, 


298  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

were  being  defeated  by  our  Emperor.  It  was  said  at  the 
time  that  the  Emperor  Francis  made  a  blunder  by  entering 
upon  the  war  before  the  Emperor  Alexander  was  in  a  posi- 
tion to  help  him. 

During  this  campaign  Bonaparte  induced  the  King  of 
Naples  to  remain  neutral,  and  agreed  to  rid  him  of  the 
French  garrison  which  he  had  hitherto  been  obliged  to  main- 
tain. Several  decrees  relating  to  the  administration  .of  France 
were  promulgated  from  various  headquarters,  and  the  former 
Doge  of  Genoa  was  created  a  senator. 

The  Emperor  liked  to  appear  to  be  engaged  in  a  number 
of  different  affairs  at  once,  and  to  show  that  he  could  cast 
what  he  called  "  an  eagle  glance "  in  every  direction  at  the 
same  instant.  For  this  reason,  and  also  on  account  of  his 
suspicious  disposition,  he  wrote  a  letter  to  the  Minister  of 
Police,  desiring  him  to  keep  a  watchful  eye  on  the  Faubourg 
St.  Germain,  meaning  those  members  of  the  French  nobility 
who  remained  opposed  to  him,  and  stating  that  he  had  been 
informed  of  certain  things  that  had  been  said  against  him  in 
his  absence,  and  would  punish  them  on  his  return. 

It  was  Fouche*'s  habit,  on  receiving  such  orders  as  these, 
to  send  for  the  persons,  both  men  and  women,  who  were 
more  specially  accused.  Whether  he  really  thought  the  Em- 
peror's displeasure  was  excited  by  mere  trifles,  and  that,  as 
he  sometimes  used  to  say,  it  was  foolish  to  prevent  French 
people  from  talking,  or  whether  he  desired  to  win  golden 
opinions  by  his  own  moderation,  after  advising  those  persons 
for  whom  he  had  sent  to  be  more  cautious,  he  would  conclude 
by  admitting  that  the  Emperor  made  too  much  ado  about 
trivialities.  Thus,  by  degrees,  he  acquired  a  reputation  for 
justice  and  moderation,  which  did  away  with  the  first  im- 
pressions of  his  character.  The  Emperor,  who  was  informed 
of  this  conduct  on  his  part,  resented  it,  and  was  secretly  on 
his  guard  against  one  so  careful  to  conciliate  all  parties. 

On  the  12th  of  November  our  victorious  army  entered 
the  gates  of  Vienna.  The  newspapers  gave  full  details  of 


TRAFALGAR.  999 

the  circumstances,  and  these  accounts  acquire  additional  in- 
terest from  the  fact  that  they  were  all  dictated  by  Bonaparte, 
and  that  he  frequently  took  upon  himself  to  invent,  as  an 
afterthought,  circumstances  or  anecdotes  likely  to  strike  the 
popular  imagination. 

"The  Emperor,"  says  the  bulletin,  "has  taken  up  his 
abode  in  the  palace  of  Schonbrunn ;  he  writes  in  a  cabinet  in 
which  stands  a  statue  of  Maria  Theresa.  On  observing  this, 
he  exclaimed :  '  Ah !  if  that  great  queen  were  still  living,  she 
would  not  allow  herself  to  be  led  by  such  a  woman  as  Mme. 
de  Colloredo !  Surrounded  by  her  nobles,  she  would  have 
ascertained  the  wishes  of  her  people.  She  would  never  have 
allowed  her  provinces  to  be  ravaged  by  the  Muscovites,' 
etc."* 

Meanwhile  some  bad  news  came  to  temper  Bonaparte's 
success.  Admiral  Nelson  had  just  beaten  our  fleet  at  Tra- 
falgar. The  French  navy  had  fought  with  splendid  bravery, 
but  had  been  disastrously  defeated.  This  produced  a  bad 
effect  in  Paris,  and  disgusted  the  Emperor  for  ever  with 
naval  enterprises.  He  became  so  deeply  prejudiced  against 
the  French  navy  that  from  that  time  it  was  scarcely  possible 
to  induce  him  to  take  any  interest  in  or  pay  any  attention  to 
the  subject.  Vainly  did  the  sailors  or  soldiers  who  had  dis- 
tinguished themselves  on  that  fatal  day  endeavor  to  obtain 
recognition  or  sympathy  for  the  dangers  they  had  encoun- 
tered :  they  were  practically  forbidden  even  to  revert  to  the 
disaster;  and  when,  in  after-years,  they  wanted  to  obtain 
any  favor,  they  took  care  not  to  claim  it  on  the  score  of  the 
admirable  courage  to  which  only  the  English  dispatches  ren- 
dered justice. 

Immediately  on  the  Emperor's  return  to  Vienna,  he  sent 
for  M.  de  Talleyrand,  perceiving  that  the  time  for  negotia- 
tions was  at  hand,  and  that  the  Emperor  of  Austria  was 
about  to  treat  for  peace.  It  is  probable  that  our  Emperor 
had  already  decided  on  making  the  Elector  of  Bavaria  a 

*  The  whole  of  this  lengthy  effusion  may  be  read  in  the  "  Moniteur." 


300  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

King,  on  enlarging  his  dominions,  and  also  on  the  marriage 
of  Prince  Eugene. 

M.  de  Remusat  was  sent  to  Paris  in  order  that  he  might 
convey  the  Imperial  insignia  and  the  crown  diamonds  to  Vi- 
enna. I  saw  him  but  for  an  instant,  and  learned  with  fresh 
vexation  that  he  was  about  to  leave  for  a  still  more,  distant 
country.  On  his  return  to  Strasburg  he  received  orders  to 
proceed  at  once  to  Vienna,  and  the  Empress  was  directed  to 
repair  to  Munich  with  the  whole  Court.  Nothing  could  ex- 
ceed the  honors  rendered  to  her  in  Germany.  Princes  and 
Electors  crowded  to  welcome  her,  and  the  Elector  of  Bavaria, 
especially,  neglected  nothing  to  make  her  reception  all  that 
could  be  desired.  She  remained  at  Munich,  waiting  for  her 
husband's  return. 

M.  de  Remusat,  while  on  his  journey,  reflected  sadly 
upon  the  condition  of  the  countries  through  which  he  passed. 
The  land  still  reeked  of  battle.  Devastated  villages,  roads 
encumbered  with  corpses  and  ruins,  brought  before  his  eyes 
all  the  horrors  of  war.  The  distress  of  the  vanquished  added 
an  element  of  danger  to  the  discomfort  of  this  journey  so 
late  in  the  season.  Everything  contributed  painfully  to  im- 
press the  imagination  of  a  man  who  was  a  friend  to  human- 
ity, and  who  lamented  the  disasters  which  result  from  the 
passions  of  conquerors.  My  husband's  letters,  full  of  pain- 
ful reflections,  grieved  me  deeply,  and  served  to  lessen  the 
enthusiasm  which  had  been  beginning  to  revive  as  I  read 
accounts  of  victories,  in  which  the  bright  side  only  was 
shown  to  the  public. 

When  M.  de  R&nusat  reached  Vienna,  the  Emperor  was 
no  longer  there.  The  negotiations  had  lasted  but  a  short 
time,  and  our  army  was  marching  forward.  M.  de  Talley- 
rand and  M.  Maret  remained  at  Schonbrunn,  where  they 
both  lived,  but  without  intimacy.  M.  Maret's  familiarity 
with  the  Emperor  gave  him  a  sort  of  influence,  which  he 
kept  up,  as  I  have  already  said,  by  adoration,  true  or  feigned, 
and  displayed  in  all  his  words  and  actions.  M.  de  Talleyrand 


M.  DE  RtiMUSAT  GOES  TO   VIENNA.  301 

would  make  fun  of  this  sometimes,  and  quiz  the  Secretary  of 
State,  who  resented  such  conduct  excessively.  He  was  there- 
fore always  on  his  guard  against  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  dis- 
liked him  sincerely. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  was  thoroughly  weary  of  Vienna, 
greeted  M.  de  Kemusat  on  his  arrival  with  great  cordiality, 
and  the  intimacy  between  them  increased  during  the  idle 
life  both  were  leading.  It  is  very  likely  that  M.  Maret,  who 
wrote  regularly  to  the  Emperor,  reported  upon  this  new 
friendship,  and  that  it  was  displeasing  to  a  person  always 
prone  to  take  offense,  and  apt  to  detect  ulterior  motives  in 
the  most  unimportant  actions  of  life. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  finding  scarcely  any  one  but  M.  de  Ke- 
musat who  could  understand  him,  disclosed  to  him  the  polit- 
ical views  with  which  the  victories  of  our  armies  inspired 
him.  He  warmly  desired  to  consolidate  the  peace  of  Europe, 
and  his  great  fear  was  that  the  glamour  of  victory  and  the 
predilections  of  the  military  men  surrounding  the  Emperor, 
all  of  them  having  again  become  accustomed  to  war,  would 
induce  the  latter  to  prolong  it.  "  When  the  moment  comes 
for  actually  concluding  peace,"  he  said,  "  you  will  see  that 
the  greatest  difficulty  I  shall  have  will  be  in  treating  with 
the  Emperor  himself,  and  it  will  take  much  talking  to  sober 
the  intoxication  produced  by  gunpowder."  In  these  moments 
of  confidence  M.  de  Talleyrand  would  speak  candidly  of  the 
Emperor.  While  he  admitted  the  great  defects  of  his  char- 
acter, he  believed  him  to  be  destined  irrevocably  to  end  the 
Revolution  in  France,  and  to  found  a  lasting  government ; 
and  he  also  believed  that  he  himself  should  be  able  to  rule 
the  Emperor's  conduct  with  regard  to  Europe.  "  If  I  fail  to 
persuade  him,"  he  said,  "  I  shall,  at  any  rate,  know  how  to 
fetter  him  in  spite  of  himself,  and  to  force  him  to  take  some 
repose." 

M.  de  Eemusat  was  delighted  to  find  an  able  statesman, 
and  one  who  enjoyed  the  confidence  of  the  Emperor,  full  of 
projects  so  wise  in  themselves ;  and  he  began  to  regard  him 


302  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

with  the  esteem  that  every  French  citizen  owes  to  a  man 
who  endeavors  to  control  the  effects  of  a  boundless  ambition. 
He  often  wrote  to  me  that  he  was  delighted  with  the  discov- 
eries which  his  intimacy  with  M.  de  Talleyrand  enabled  him 
to  make,  and  I  began  to  feel  interest  in  one  who  alleviated 
the  wearisome  exile  of  my  husband. 

In  my  hours  of  solitude  and  anxiety,  my  husband's  let- 
ters were  my  only  pleasure  and  the  sole  charm  of  my  exist- 
ence. Although  he  prudently  avoided  details,  I  could  see 
that  he  was  satisfied  with  his  position.  Then  he  would  de- 
scribe to  me  the  different  sights  he  had  seen.  He  would  tell 
me  of  his  drives  or  walks  in  Yienna,  which  he  described  as  a 
large  and  beautiful  city,  and  of  his  visits  to  certain  important 
personages  who  had  remained  there,  as  well  as  to  other  fam- 
ilies. He  was  struck  by  their  extreme  attachment  to  the 
Emperor  Francis.  These  good  people  of  Yienna,  although 
their  city  was  conquered,  did  not  hesitate  openly  to  express 
their  hopes  of  a  speedy  return  to  the  paternal  rule  of  their 
master ;  and,  while  they  sympathized  with  him  in  his  re- 
verses, they  never  uttered  a  single  reproach. 

Good  order  was  maintained  in  Yienna ;  the  garrison  was 
under  strict  discipline,  and  the  inhabitants  had  no  great  cause 
of  complaint  against  their  conquerors.  The  French  entered 
into  some  of  the  amusements  of  the  place ;  they  frequented 
the  theatres,  and  it  was  at  Yienna  that  M.  de  Kemusat  first 
heard  the  celebrated  Italian  singer  Crescentini,  and  subse- 
quently engaged  him  for  the  Emperor's  musical  service. 


CHAPTEE  XY. 

(1805.) 

The  Battle  of  Austerlitz — The  Emperor  Alexander — Negotiations — Prince  Charles 
— M.  d' Andre— M.  de  Be"musat  in  Disgrace— Duroc— Savary— The  Treaty  of 
Peace. 

THE  arrival  of  the  Eussian  forces  and  the  severe  condi- 
tions exacted  by  the  conqueror  made  the  Emperor  of  Austria 
resolve  on  once  more  trying  the  fortune  of  war.  Having 
assembled  his  forces  and  joined  the  Emperor  Alexander,  he 
awaited  Bonaparte,  who  was  advancing  to  meet  him.  The 
two  immense  armies  met  in  Moravia,  near  the  little  village 
of  Austerlitz,  which,  until  then  unknown,  has  become  for 
ever  memorable  by  reason  of  the  great  victory  which  France 
won  there. 

Bonaparte  resolved  to  give  battle  on  the  following  day, 
the  1st  of  December,  the  anniversary  of  his  coronation. 

The  Czar  had  sent  Prince  Dolgorouki  to  our  headquar- 
ters with  proposals  of  peace,  which,  if  the  Emperor  has  told 
the  truth  in  his  bulletins,  could  hardly  be  entertained  by  a 
conqueror  in  possession  of  his  enemy's  capital.  If  we  may 
believe  him,  the  surrender  of  Belgium  was  demanded,  and 
that  the  Iron  Crown  should  be  placed  on  another  head. 
The  envoy  was  taken  through  a  part  of  the  encampment 
which  had  been  purposely  left  in  confusion ;  he  was  deceived 
by  this,  and  misled  the  Emperors  by  his  report  of  the  state 
of  things. 

The  bulletin  of  those  two  days,  the  1st  and  2d  of  Decem- 
ber, states  that  the  Emperor,  on  returning  to  his  quarters 
24 


304  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

toward  evening,  spoke  these  words:  "This  is  the  fairest 
evening  of  my  life ;  but  I  regret  to  think  that  I  must  lose  a 
good  number  of  these  brave  fellows.  I  feel,  by  the  pain  it 
gives  me,  that  they  are  indeed  my  children ;  and  I  reproach 
myself  for  this  feeling,  for  I  fear  it  may  render  me  unfit  to 
make  war." 

The  following  day,  in  addressing  his  soldiers,  he  said: 
"  This  campaign  must  be  ended  by  a  thunder-clap.  If  France 
is  to  make  peace  only  on  the  terms  proposed  by  Dolgorouki, 
Russia  shall  not  obtain  them,  even  were  her  army  encamped 
on  the  heights  of  Montmartre."  Yet  it  was  decreed  that 
these  same  armies  should,  one  day,  be  encamped  there,  and 
that  at  Belleville  Alexander  was  to  receive  Napoleon's  envoy, 
coming  to  offer  him  peace  on  any  terms  he  chose  to  dictate. 

I  will  not  transcribe  the  narrative  of  that  battle,  so  truly 
honorable  to  our  arms — it  will  be  found  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  ; 
and  the  Emperor  of  Eussia,  with  characteristic  and  noble 
simplicity,  declared  that  the  dispositions  taken  by  the  Em- 
peror to  insure  success,  the  skill  of  his  generals,  and  the  ar- 
dor of  the  French  soldiers,  were  all  alike  incomparable.  The 
flower  of  the  three  nations  fought  with  unflagging  determina- 
tion ;  the  two  Emperors  were  obliged  to  fly  in  order  to  es- 
cape being  taken,  and,  but  for  the  conferences  of  the  follow- 
ing day,  it  seems  that  the  Emperor  of  Russia  would  have 
found  his  retreat  very  difficult. 

The  Emperor  dictated  almost  from  the  field  of  battle  the 
narrative  of  all  that  had  taken  place  on  the  1st,  the  2d,  and 
the  3d  of  December.  He  even  wrote  part  of  it  himself. 
The  dispatch,  hurriedly  composed,  yet  full  of  details  and 
very  interesting,  even  at  the  present  day,  on  account  of  the 
spirit  in  which  it  was  conceived,  consisted  of  twenty-five 
pages  covered  with  erasures  and  with  references,  and  was 
sent  to  M.  Maret  at  Yienna,  to  be  immediately  put  in  form 
and  sent  to  the  "  Moniteur  "  in  Paris. 

On  receiving  this  dispatch,  M.  Maret  hastened  to  com- 
municate it  to  M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  de  Remusat.  All 


AFTER   THE  BATTLE  OF  AU3TERLITZ.  3Q5 

three  were  then  residing  in  the  palace  of  the  Emperor  of 
Austria ;  they  shut  themselves  up  in  the  Empress's  private 
apartment,  then  occupied  by  M.  de  Talleyrand,  in  order  to 
decipher  the  manuscript.  The  handwriting  of  the  Emperor, 
which  was  always  very  illegible,  and  his  bad  spelling,  made 
this  a  somewhat  lengthy  task.  The  order  of  events  had  to 
be  rearranged,  and  incorrect  expressions  to  be  replaced  by 
more  suitable  ones,  and  then,  by  the  advice  of  M.  de  Talley- 
rand and  to  the  great  terror  of  M.  Maret,  certain  phrases 
were  suppressed,  as  too  humiliating  to  the  foreign  sovereigns, 
or  so  directly  eulogistic  of  Bonaparte  himself  that  one  won- 
ders he  could  have  penned  them.  They  retained  certain 
phrases  which  were  underscored,  and  to  which  it  was  evident 
he  attached  importance.  This  task  lasted  several  hours,  and 
was  interesting  to  M.  de  Remusat,  as  it  gave  him  an  oppor- 
tunity of  observing  the  very  different  methods  of  serving 
the  Emperor  adopted  by  the  two  Ministers  respectively. 

After  the  battle,  the  Emperor  Francis  asked  for  an  in- 
terview, which  took  place  at  the  French  Emperor's  quar- 
ters. 

"  This,"  said  Bonaparte,  "  has  been  my  only  palace  for 
the  last  two  months." 

"  You  make  such  good  use  of  it,"  replied  the  Emperor  of 
Austria,  "  that  it  ought  to  be  agreeable  to  you." 

"  It  is  asserted,"  says  the  bulletin,  "  that  the  Emperor, 
in  speaking  of  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  used  these  words : 
*  That  man  has  led  me  to  commit  an  error,  for  I  could  have 
followed  up  my  victory,  and  have  taken  the  whole  Russian 
and  Austrian  army  prisoners;  but,  after  all,  there  will  be 
some  tears  the  less.' " 

According  to  the  bulletin,  the  Czar  was  let  off  easily. 
Here  is  the  account  of  the  visit  which  Savary  was  sent  to 
make  to  him : 

"  The  Emperor's  aide-de-camp  had  accompanied  the  Em- 
peror of  Germany  after  the  interview,  in  order  to  learn 
whether  the  Emperor  of  Russia  would  agree  to  the  capitula- 


306  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

fcion.  He  found  the  remnant  of  the  Russian  army  without 
artillery  or  baggage,  and  in  frightful  disorder. 

"  It  was  midnight ;  General  Meerfeld  had  been  repulsed 
from  Golding  by  Marshal  Davoust,  and  the  Russian  army 
was  surrounded — not  a  man  could  escape.  Prince  Czarto- 
ryski  presented  General  Savary  to  the  Emperor. 

" '  Tell  your  master,'  said  the  Czar, i  that  I  am  going  away ; 
that  he  did  wonders  yesterday,  that  his  achievements  have 
increased  my  admiration  for  him,  that  he  is  predestined  by 
Heaven,  and  that  my  army  would  require  a  hundred  years 
to  equal  his.  But  can  I  withdraw  in  safety  ? '  *  Yes,  sire,  if 
your  Majesty  ratifies  what  the  two  Emperors  of  France  and 
Austria  have  agreed  upon  in  their  interview.'  '  And  what  is 
that  ? '  *  That  your  Majesty's  army  shall  return  home  by 
stages  to  be  regulated  by  the  Emperor,  and  that  it  shall  evac- 
uate Germany  and  Austrian  Poland.  On  these  conditions  I 
have  it  in  commission  to  go  to  our  outposts,  and  give  them 
orders  to  protect  your  retreat,  as  the  Emperor  is  desirous  to 
protect  the  friend  of  the  First  Consul.'  '  What  guarantee  is 
required  ? '  '  Your  word,  sire.'  '  I  give  it  you.' 

"  General  Savary  set  out  on  the  instant  at  full  gallop,  and, 
having  joined  Davoust,  he  gave  orders  to  suspend  all  opera- 
tions and  remain  quiet.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  generosity 
of  the  Emperor  of  France  on  this  occasion  may  not  be  so 
soon  forgotten  in  Russia  as  was  his  sending  back  six  thousand 
men  to  the  Emperor  Paul,  with  expressions  of  his  esteem. 

"  General  Savary  had  an  hour's  conversation  with  the 
Emperor  of  Russia,  and  found  him  all  that  a  man  of  good 
sense  and  good  feeling  ought  to  be,  whatever  reverses  he 
may  have  experienced. 

"The  Emperor  asked  him  about  the  details  of  the  day. 
'  You  were  inferior  to  me,'  he  said,  (  and  yet  you  were  supe- 
rior upon  all  the  points  of  attack.'  '  That,  sire,'  answered 
the  General,  '  is  the  art  of  war,  and  the  fruit  of  fifteen  years 
of  glory.  This  is  the  fortieth  battle  the  Emperor  has  fought.' 
'  True.  He  is  a  great  warrior.  As  for  me,  this  is  the  first 


SPECULATION.  307 

time  I  have  seen  fighting.  I  have  never  had  any  pretension 
to  measure  myself  with  him.'  '  When  you  have  experience, 
sire,  you  may  perhaps  surpass  him.'  '  I  shall  now  go  away 
to  my  capital.  I  came  to  lend  my  aid  to  the  Emperor  of 
Austria ;  he  has  had  me  informed  that  he  is  content,  and  I 
am  the  same.'  "  * 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  speculation  at  that  time  as  to 
what  was  the  Emperor's  real  reason  for  consenting  to  make 
peace  after  this  battle,  instead  of  pushing  his  victory  further ; 
for,  of  course,  nobody  believed  in  the  motive  which  was  as- 
signed for  it,  i.  e.,  the  sparing  of  so  many  tears  which  must 
otherwise  have  been  shed. 

May  we  conclude  that  the  day  of  Austerlitz  had  cost  him 
so  dear  as  to  make  him  shrink  from  incurring  another  like  it, 
and  that  the  Russian  army  was  not  so  utterly  defeated  as  he 
would  have  had  us  believe  ?  Or  was  it  that  again  he  had 
done  as  he  himself  expressed  it,  when  he  was  asked  why  he 
had  put  an  end  to  the  march  of  victory  by  the  treaty  of  Leo- 
ben  :  "  I  was  playing  at  vingt-et-un,  and  I  stopped  short  at 
vingt "  \  May  we  believe  that  Bonaparte,  in  his  first  year 
of  empire,  did  not  yet  venture  to  sacrifice  the  lives  of  the 
people  as  ruthlessly  as  he  afterward  sacrificed  them,  and  that, 
having  entire  confidence  in  M.  de  Talleyrand  at  that  period, 
he  yielded  more  readily  to  the  moderate  policy  of  his  Minis- 
ter ?  Perhaps,  too,  he  believed  that  he  had  reduced  the  Aus- 
trian power  by  his  campaign  more  than  he  really  had  reduced 
it ;  for  he  said,  after  his  return  from  Munich,  "  I  have  left 
the  Emperor  Francis  too  many  subjects." 

"Whatever  may  have  been  his  motives,  he  deserves  praise 
for  the  spirit  of  moderation  that  he  maintained  in  the  midst 
of  an  army  heated  by  victory,  and  which  certainly  was  at 
that  moment  desirous  of  prolonging  the  war.  The  marshals 

*  All  these  anecdotes  are  related  in  the  30th  and  Slst  bulletins  of  the  Grand 
Army,  dated  from  Austerlitz,  12th  and  14th  Frimaire,  year  14  (3d  and  5th  De- 
cember, 1806),  pages  543  and  555  of  vol.  xi.  of  the  "  Correspondence  of  Napo- 
leon the  First,"  published  by  order  of  the  Emperor  Napoleon  the  Third.— P.  K. 


308  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MVSAT. 

and  all  the  officers  about  the  Emperor  did  everything  iii 
their  power  to  induce  him  to  carry  on  the  campaign ;  they 
were  certain  of  victory  everywhere,  and  by  shaking  the  pur- 
pose of  their  chief  they  created  for  M.  de  Talleyrand  all  the 
difficulties  that  he  had  foreseen.  The  Minister,  summoned 
to  headquarters,  had  to  contend  with  the  disposition  of  the 
army.  He  maintained,  alone  and  unsupported,  that  peace 
must  be  concluded — that  the  Austrian  power  was  necessary 
to  the  equilibrium  of  Europe ;  and  it  was  then  that  he  said, 
u  When  you  shall  have  weakened  all  the  powers  of  the  cen- 
ter, how  are  you  to  hinder  those  of  the  extremities — the  Eus- 
sians,  for  instance — from  falling  upon  them?"  In  reply  to 
this  he  was  met  by  private  interests,  by  a  personal  and  insa- 
tiable desire  for  the  chances  of  fortune  which  the  continu- 
ance of  the  war  might  offer ;  and  certain  persons,  who  knew 
the  Emperor's  character  well,  said,  "  If  even  we  do  not  put 
an  end  to  this  affair  on  the  spot,  you  will  see  that  we  shall 
commence  another  campaign  by  and  by." 

As  for  the  Emperor  himself,  disturbed  by  this  diversity 
of  opinion,  urged  by  his  love  of  war,  and  influenced  by  his 
habitual  distrust,  he  allowed  M.  de  Talleyrand  to  perceive 
that  he  suspected  him  of  a  secret  understanding  with  the 
Austrian  ambassador,  and  of  sacrificing  the  interests  of 
France.  M.  de  Talleyrand  answered  with  that  firmness 
which  he  always  maintains  in  great  affairs,  when  he  has 
taken  a  certain  line :  "  You  deceive  yourself.  My  object 
is  to  sacrifice  the  interest  of  your  generals,  which  is  no  con- 
cern of  mine,  to  the  interests  of  France.  Eeflect  that  you 
lower  yourself  by  saying  such  things  as  they  say,  and  that 
you  are  worthy  to  be  something  more  than  a  mere  soldier." 
The  Emperor  was  flattered  by  being  praised  at  the  expense 
of  his  former  companions  in  arms ;  and  by  adroitness  of  this 
kind  M.  de  Talleyrand  succeeded  in  gaining  his  ends.  At 
length  he  brought  the  Emperor  to  resolve  on  sending  him  to 
Presburg,  where  the  negotiations  were  to  take  place ;  but  it 
is  a  strange  and  probably  unexampled  fact  that  Bonaparte, 


MEETING  OF  THE  TWO  EMPERORS.  309 

while  giving  M.  de  Talleyrand  powers  to  treat  for  peace, 
actually  deceived  him  on  a  point  of  vital  importance,  and 
placed  in  his  path  the  greatest  difficulty  that  ever  a  negotia- 
tor had  experienced. 

On  the  occasion  of  the  meeting  of  the  two  Emperors 
after  the  battle,  the  Emperor  of  Austria  consented  to  relin- 
quish the  State  of  Venice ;  but  he  had  demanded  that  the 
portion  of  the  Tyrol  conquered  by  Massena  should  be  re- 
stored to  Austria,  and  Napoleon,  no  doubt  affected  in  spite 
of  his  mastery  over  his  emotions,  and  a  little  off  his  guard  in 
the  presence  of  this  vanquished  sovereign,  who  had  come  to 
discuss  his  interests  in  person  on  the  battle-field  where  the 
bodies  of  his  subjects  who  had  fallen  in  his  cause  still  lay, 
had  not  been  able  to  maintain  his  inflexibility.  He  gave  up 
the  Tyrol ;  but  no  sooner  had  the  interview  come  to  an  end 
than  he  repented  of  what  he  had  done,  and,  when  giving  M. 
de  Talleyrand  details  of  the  engagements  to  which  he  had 
pledged  himself,  he  kept  that  one  secret.* 

The  Minister  having  set  out  for  Presburg,  Bonaparte  re- 
turned to  Vienna,  and  took  up  his  abode  in  the  palace  at 
Schonbrunn.  He  occupied  himself  in  reviewing  his  army, 
verifying  his  losses,  and  reforming  each  corps  as  it  presented 
itself  for  inspection.  In  his  pride  and  satisfaction  in  the 
results  of  the  campaign,  he  was  good-humored  with  every- 
body, behaved  well  to  all  those  members  of  the  Court  who 
awaited  him  at  Vienna,  and  took  great  pleasure  in  relating 
the  wonders  of  the  war. 

On  one  point  only  did  he  exhibit  displeasure.  He  was 
greatly  surprised  that  his  presence  produced  so  little  effect 
upon  the  Viennese,  and  that  it  was  so  difficult  to  induce 
them  to  attend  the  fetes  he  provided  for  them,  and  the  din- 
ners at  the  palace  to  which  he  invited  them.  Bonaparte 
could  not  understand  their  attachment  to  a  conquered  sov- 

*  In  the  definitive  treaty  the  Tyrol  was  given  to  Bavaria  in  consideration  of 
the  marriage  of  the  Princess  Augusta  with  Eugene  de  Beauharnais,  Viceroy  of 
Italy.-?.  R. 


310  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

ereign — one,  too,  so  much  inferior  to  himself.  One  day  he 
spoke  quite  openly  about  this  to  M.  de  Kemusat.  "  You 
have  passed  some  time  at  Vienna,"  he  said,  "  and  have  had 
opportunities  of  observing  them.  What  a  strange  people 
they  are !  They  seem  insensible  alike  to  glory  and  to  re- 
verses." M.  de  Remusat,  who  had  formed  a  high  opinion 
of  the  Viennese,  and  admired  their  disinterested  and  loyal 
character,  replied  by  praising  them,  and  relating  several  in- 
stances of  their  attachment  to  their  sovereign  of  which  he 
had  been  an  eye-witness.  "  But,"  said  Bonaparte,  "  they 
must  sometimes  have  talked  of  me.  "What  do  they  say  ? " 
"  Sire,"  answered  M.  de  Kemusat,  "  they  say,  'The  Emperor 
Napoleon  is  a  great  man,  it  is  true ;  but  our  Emperor  is  per- 
fectly good,  and  we  can  love  none  but  him.'  "  These  senti- 
ments, which  were  all  unchanged  by  misfortune,  were  in- 
comprehensible to  a  man  who  recognized  no  merit  except  in 
success.  When,  after  his  return  to  Paris,  he  heard  of  the 
touching  reception  given  by  the  Viennese  to  their  vanquished 
Emperor,  he  exclaimed :  "  What  people !  If  I  came  back 
to  Paris  thus,  I  should  certainly  not  be  received  after  that 
fashion." 

A  few  days  after  the  Emperor's  return,  M.  de  Talleyrand 
arrived  at  Vienna  from  Presburg,  to  the  great  surprise  of 
everybody.  The  Austrian  ministers  at  Presburg  had  brought 
forward  the  subject  of  the  Tyrol ;  he  had  been  obliged  to 
admit  that  he  had  no  instructions  on  that  point,  and  he  now 
came  to  obtain  them.  He  was  much  displeased  at  having 
been  treated  in  such  a  manner.  When  he  spoke  of  this  to 
the  Emperor,  the  latter  told  him  that  in  a  yielding  moment, 
of  which  he  now  repented,  he  had  acceded  to  the  request  of 
the  Emperor  Francis,  but  that  he  was  quite  resolved  not  to 
keep  his  word.  M.  de  Remusat  told  me  that  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, of  whom  he  saw  a  great  deal  at  this  time,  was  really 
indignant.  Not  only  did  he  perceive  that  war  was  about  to 
begin  again,  but  that  the  Cabinet  of  France  was  stained  by 
perfidy,  and  a  portion  of  the  dishonor  would  inevitably  fall 


PRINCE  CHARLES.  311 

upon  him.  His  mission  to  Presburg  would  henceforth  be 
ridiculous,  would  show  how  little  influence  over  his  master 
he  possessed,  and  would  destroy  his  personal  credit  in  Europe, 
which  he  took  such  care  to  preserve.  The  marshals  raised 
their  war-cry  anew.  Murat,  Berthier,  Maret,  all  the  flatter- 
ers of  the  Emperor's  ruling  passion,  seeing  to  which  side  he 
leaned,  urged  him  on  toward  what  they  called  "  glory."  M. 
de  Talleyrand  had  to  bear  reproaches  from  every  one,  and 
he  often  said  to  my  husband,  bitterly  enough :  "  I  find  no  one 
but  yourself  here  to  show  me  any  friendship  ;  it  would  take 
very  little  more  to  make  those  people  regard  me  as  a  traitor." 
His  conduct  at  this  period,  and  his  patience,  did  him  honor. 
He  succeeded  in  bringing  the  Emperor  back  to  his  way  of 
thinking  upon  the  necessity  of  making  peace,  and,  after 
having  extracted  from  him  the  final  word  which  he  required, 
he  set  out  a  second  time  for  Presburg,  better  satisfied,  al- 
though he  could  not  obtain  the  restitution  of  the  Tyrol.  On 
taking  leave  of  M.  de  Eemusat,  he  said,  "  I  shall  settle  the 
affair  of  the  Tyrol,  and  induce  the  Emperor  to  make  peace, 
in  spite  of  himself." 

During  Bonaparte's  stay  at  Schonbrunn  he  received  a 
letter  from  Prince  Charles,  to  the  effect  that,  being  full  of 
admiration  for  his  person,  the  Prince  wished  to  see  and  con- 
verse with  him.  The  Emperor,  flattered  by  this  compliment 
from  a  man  who  enjoyed  a  high  reputation  in  Europe,  fixed 
upon  a  small  hunting-lodge  a  few  leagues  from  the  palace  as 
the  place  of  meeting,  and  directed  M.  de  Remusat  to  join 
the  other  persons  who  were  to  accompany  him.  He  also 
bade  him  take  with  him  a  very  richly  mounted  sword. 
"  After  our  conversation,"  said  he,  "  you  will  hand  it  to  me. 
I  wish  to  present  it  to  the  Prince  on  leaving  him." 

The  Emperor  joined  the  Prince,  and  they  remained  in 
private  conference  for  some  time.  "When  he  came  out  of 
the  room  my  husband  approached  him,  according  to  the 
orders  he  had  received.  Bonaparte  impatiently  waved  him 
off,  telling  him  that  he  might  take  the  sword  away;'  and 


312  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

when  he  returned  to  Schonbrunn  he  spoke  slightingly  of  the 
Prince,  saying  that  he  had  found  him  very  commonplace, 
and  by  no  means  worthy  of  the  present  he  had  intended  for 
him.* 

I  must  now  relate  an  incident  which  concerned  M.  de 
Remusat  personally,  and  which  once  more  checked  the  favor 
that  the  Emperor  seemed  disposed  to  extend  toward  him.  I 
have  frequently  remarked  that  our  destiny  always  arranged 
matters  so  that  we  should  not  profit  by  the  advantages  of  our 
position,  but  since  that  time  I  have  often  felt  thankful  to 
Providence ;  for  that  very  contrariety  preserved  us  from  a 
more  disastrous  fall. 

In  the  early  years  of  the  Consular  Government  the 
King's  party  had  clung  to  the  hope  of  a  revival  of  favorable 
chances  for  him  in  France,  and  they  had  more  than  once 
tried  to  establish  an  understanding  with  the  country.  M. 
d' Andre,  formerly  a  deputy  to  the  Constituent  Assembly,  an 
emigre,  and  devoted  to  the  royal  cause,  had  undertaken 
Royalist  missions  to  some  of  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  and 
Bonaparte  was  perfectly  aware  of  that  fact.  M.  d' Andre 
was,  like  M.  de  Remusat,  a  native  of  Provence,  and  they 
had  been  schoolfellows.  M.  d' Andre  had  also  been  a  magis- 
trate prior  to  the  Revolution  (he  was  Councilor  to  the  Par- 
liament of  Aix),  and,  although  they  did  not  keep  up  any 
mutual  relations,  they  were  not  entirely  strangers.  At  the 
period  of  which  I  am  writing,  M.  d' Andre,  disheartened  by 
the  failure  of  his  fruitless  efforts,  convinced  that  the  Impe- 
rial cause  was  absolutely  victorious,  and  weary  of  a  wander- 
ing life  and  consequently  straitened  means,  was  longing  to 
return  to  his  own  country.  Being  in  Hungary  during  the 
campaign  of  1805,  he  sent  his  wife  to  Vienna,  and  appealed 
to  his  friend  General  Mathieu  Dumas  to  obtain  leave  for 
him.  The  General,  although  rather  alarmed  at  having  to 

*  This  is  a  softened  version  of  what  the  Emperor  said.  The  truth  is  that, 
when  his  Chamberlain  drew  near  to  remind  him  of  his  intentions  and  to  hand 
him  the  sword,  the  Emperor  said :  "  Let  me  alone ;  he's  a  fool !  " 


M.  DE  ANDR&  313 

undertake  such  a  mission,  promised  to  take  steps  in  the  mat- 
ter, but  advised  Mine,  d' Andre  to  see  M.  de  Remusat  and 
procure  his  interest.  One  morning  Mme.  d' Andre  arrived. 
My  husband  received  her  as  he  conceived  he  ought  to  re- 
ceive the  wife  of  a  former  friend ;  he  was  much  concerned 
at  the  position  in  which  she  represented  M.  d' Andre  to  be, 
and,  not  knowing  that  there  were  particular  circumstances  in 
the  case  which  were  likely  to  render  the  Emperor  implacable, 
thinking  besides  that  his  victories  might  incline  him  to  clem- 
ency, consented  to  present  her  petition.  His  official  position 
as  Keeper  of  the  Wardrobe  gave  him  the  right  to  enter  the 
Emperor's  dressing-room.  He  hastened  down  to  his  Majes- 
ty's apartment,  and  found  him  half  dressed  and  in  a  good 
humor,  whereupon  he  immediately  gave  him  an  account  of 
Mme.  d' Andre's  visit,  and  preferred  the  request  which  he  had 
undertaken  to  urge. 

At  the  mention  of  the  name  of  M.  d' Andre  the  Emper- 
or's face  darkened.  "  Do  you  know,"  said  he,  "  that  you  are 
talking  to  me  of  a  mortal  enemy  ? "  "  No,  sire,"  replied  M. 
de  Remusat;  "I  am  ignorant  whether  your  Majesty  has 
really  reason  to  complain  of  him ;  but,  if  such  be  the  case,  I 
would  venture  to  ask  pardon  for  him.  M.  d' Andre  is  poor 
and  proscribed ;  he  asks  only  that  he  may  return  and  grow 
old  in  our  common  country."  "Have  you  any  relations 
with  him?"  "None,  sire."  "And  why  do  you  interest 
yourself  in  him  2 "  "  Sire,  he  is  a  Provencal ;  he  was  edu- 
cated with  me  at  Juilly,  he  is  of  my  own  profession,  and  he 
was  my  friend."  "  You  are  very  fortunate,"  said  the  Em- 
peror, darting  a  fierce  glance  at  him,  "  to  have  such  motives 
to  excuse  you.  Never  speak  of  him  to  me  again  ;  and  know 
this:  if  he  were  at  Vienna,  and  I  could  get  hold  of  him, 
he  should  be  hanged  within  twenty-four  hours."  Having 
said  these  words,  the  Emperor  turned  his  back  on  M.  de 
Remusat. 

Wherever  the  Emperor  was  with  his  Court,  he  habitually 
held  what  was  called  his  levee  every  morning.  So  soon  as 


314  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMUSAT. 

he  was  dressed,  he  entered  a  reception-room,  and  those  per- 
sons who  formed  what  was  called  the  "  service  "  were  sum- 
moned. These  were  the  great  officers  of  his  household,  M. 
de  Remusat,  as  Keeper  of  the  Wardrobe  and  First  Cham- 
berlain, and  the  generals  of  his  guard.  The  second  levee 
was  composed  of  the  Chamberlains,  of  such  generals  of  the 
army  as  could  present  themselves,  and,  in  Paris,  of  the  Pre- 
fect of  Paris,  the  Prefect  of  Police,  the  Princes,  and  the 
Ministers.  Sometimes  he  greeted  all  these  personages 
silently,  with  a  mere  bow,  and  dismissed  them  at  once. 
He  gave  orders  when  it  was  necessary,  and  he  did  not  hesi- 
tate to  scold  any  one  with  whom  he  was  displeased,  without 
the  slightest  regard  to  the  awkwardness  of  giving  or  receiv- 
ing reprimands  before  a  crowd  of  witnesses.  . 

After  he  left  M.  de  Remusat,  the  Emperor  held  his 
levee ;  then  he  sent  everybody  away,  and  held  a  long  con- 
versation with  General  Savary.  On  its  conclusion,  Savary 
rejoined  my  husband  in  one  of  the  reception-rooms,  took 
him  aside,  and  addressed  him  after  a  fashion  which  would 
appear  very  strange  to  any  one  unacquainted  with  the  crudity 
of  the  General's  principles  in  certain  matters. 

"  Let  me  congratulate  you,"  said  he,  accosting  M.  de  Re"- 
musat,  "  on  a  fine  opportunity  of  making  your  fortune,  of 
which  I  strongly  advise  you  to  avail  yourself.  You  played 
a  dangerous  game  just  now  by  talking  to  the  Emperor  of 
M.  d'  Andre",  but  all  may  be  set  right  again.  Where  is  he  ? 
But,  now  I  think,  of  it,  he  is  in  Hungary — at  least,  his  wife 
told  me  so.  Ah,  bah  !  don't  dissimulate  about  it.  The  Em- 
peror believes  that  he  is  in  Yienna ;  he  is  convinced  that  you 
know  where  he  is,  and  he  wants  you  to  tell."  "  I  assure 
you,  General,"  replied  M.  de  Remusat,  "  that  I  am  abso- 
lutely ignorant  of  where  he  is.  I  had  no  correspondence 
with  him.  His  wife  came  to  see  me  to-day  for  the  first 
time ;  she  begged  me  to  speak  for  her  husband  to  the  Em- 
peror ;  I  have  done  so,  and  that  is  all."  "  Well,  then,  if 
that  be  so,  send  for  her  to  come  to  you  again.  She  will 


M.  DE  RtiMUSAT  IN  DISGRACE.  315 

have  no  suspicion  of  you.  Make  her  talk,  and  try  to  elicit 
from  her  where  her  husband  is.  You  can  not  imagine  how 
much  you  will  please  the  Emperor  by  rendering  him  this 
service." 

M.  de  Remusat,  utterly  confounded  at  this  speech,  was 
quite  unable  to  conceal  his  astonishment.  "  What ! "  he  ex- 
claimed, "  you  make  such  a  proposal  as  that  to  me  ?  I  told 
the  Emperor  that  I  was  the  friend  of  M.  d' Andre;  you 
also  know  that,  and  you  would  have  me  betray  him,  give 
him  up,  and  that  by  means  of  his  wife,  who  has  trusted 
me  ! "  Savary  was  astonished,  in  his  turn,  at  the  indigna- 
tion of  M.  de  Remusat.  "What  f oily  ! "  said  he.  "Take 
care  you  do  not  spoil  your  luck !  The  Emperor  has  more 
than  once  had  occasion  to  doubt  that  you  are  as  entirely  de- 
voted to  him  as  he  would  have  you  to  be.  Now,  here  is  an 
opportunity  for  removing  his  suspicions,  and  you  will  be 
very  unwise  if  you  let  it  escape." 

The  conversation  lasted  for  some  time.  M.  de  Remusat 
was,  of  course,  unshaken ;  he  assured  Savary  that,  far  from 
seeking  out  Mme.  d' Andre,  he  would  not  even  consent  to  see 
her,  and  he  informed  her,  through  General  Mathieu  Dumas, 
of  the  failure  of  his  mission.  Savary  returned  to  the  sub- 
ject in  the  course  of  the  day,  and  said,  over  and  over  again  : 
"  You  are  throwing  away  your  chances  ;  I  confess  I  can  not 
make  you  out."  "  That  does  not  matter,"  my  husband  would 
reply. 

And,  in  fact,  the  Emperor  did  resent  this  refusal,  and 
assumed  toward  M.  de  Remusat  the  harsh,  icy  tone  which 
was  always  a  mark  of  his  displeasure.  M.  de  Remusat  en- 
dured it  with  resignation,  and  complained  only  to  Duroc,  the 
Grand  Marshal  of  the  Palace,  who  understood  his  difficulty 
better  than  Savary  could,  but  regretted  that  anything  should 
have  occurred  to  diminish  his  favor  with  Bonaparte.  He 
also  congratulated  my  husband  on  his  conduct,  which  seemed 
to  him  an  act  of  the  greatest  courage  ;  for  not  to  obey  the  Em- 
peror was,  in  his  eyes,  the  most  wonderful  thing  in  the  world. 


316  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B^MUSAT. 

Duroc  was  a  man  of  a  singular  character.  His  mind  was 
narrow  ;  his  feelings  and  thoughts  were  always,  perhaps  de- 
liberately, confined  to  a  small  circle ;  but  he  lacked  neither 
cleverness  nor  clear-sightedness.  He  was  filled,  perhaps, 
rather  with  submission  than  devotion  to  Bonaparte,  and  be- 
lieved that  no  one  placed  near  him  could  use  any  or  every 
faculty  better  than  in  exactly  obeying  him. 

In  order  not  to  fail  in  this,  which  he  considered  a  strict 
duty,  he  would  not  allow  himself  even  a  thought  beyond 
the  obligations  of  his  post.  Cold,  silent,  and  impenetrable 
as  to  every  secret  confided  to  him,  I  believe  he  had  made  it 
a  law  to  himself  never  to  reflect  on  the  orders  he  received. 
He  did  not  flatter  the  Emperor ;  he  did  not  seek  to  please 
him  by  tale-bearing,  which,  though  often  tending  to  no  re- 
sult, was  yet  gratifying  to  Bonaparte's  naturally  suspicious 
mind  ;  but,  like  a  mirror,  Duroc  reflected  for  his  master  all 
that  had  taken  place  in  his  presence,  and,  like  an  echo,  he 
repeated  his  master's  words  in  the  same  tone  and  manner  in 
which  they  had  been  uttered.  Were  we  to  have  fallen  dead 
before  his  eyes  in  consequence  of  a  message  of  which  he  was 
the  bearer,  he  would  still  have  delivered  it  with  imperturba- 
ble precision. 

I  do  not  think  he  ever  inquired  of  himself  whether  the 
Emperor  was  or  was  not  a  great  man ;  he  was  the  master, 
and  that  was  enough.  His  obedience  made  him  of  great  use 
to  the  Emperor ;  the  interior  of  the  palace,  the  entire  man- 
agement of  the  household  and  its  expenditure,  was  his 
charge,  and  everything  was  regulated  with  perfect  brder  and 
extreme  economy,  and  yet  with  great  magnificence. 

Marshal  Duroc  had  married  a  Spanish  lady  of  great  for- 
tune, little  beauty,  and  a  good  deal  of  intelligence.  She  was 
the  daughter  of  a  Spanish  banker  named  Hervas,  who  had 
been  employed  in  some  second-rate  diplomatic  capacity,  and 
had  subsequently  been  created  Marquis  d'Abruenara.  He 
was  Minister  in  Spain  under  Joseph  Bonaparte.  Mme.  Du- 
roc had  been  brought  up  at  Mme.  Campan's  school,  where 


DUROC.  317 

Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte,  Mme.  Savary,  Mme.  Davoust,  Mme. 
Ney,  and  others,  had  also  been  educated. 

She  and  her  husband  lived  together  on  good  terms,  but 
without  that  perfect  union  which  is  so  great  a  source  of  con- 
solation to  those  who  have  to  endure  the  restraints  of  a 
Coiirt.  He  would  not  allow  her  to  hold  an  opinion  of  her 
own  on  passing  events,  or  to  have  any  familiar  friend ;  and 
he  had  none  himself.  I  have  never  known  any  one  who 
felt  less  need  of  friendship,  or  who  cared  less  for  the  plea- 
sures of  conversation.  He  had  not  the  slightest  idea  of  social 
life ;  he  did  not  know  the  meaning  of  a  taste  for  literature 
or  art ;  and  this  indifference  to  things  in  general,  which  he 
combined  with  the  most  perfect  obedience  to  orders,  while 
he  never  showed  any  sign  of  weariness  or  constraint,  nor  yet 
the  slightest  appearance  of  enthusiasm,  made  him  quite  a 
remarkable  character,  and  interesting  to  observe.  He  was 
greatly  esteemed  at  Court,  or  at  any  rate  was  of  great  im- 
portance. Everything  was  referred  to  him,  and  to  him  all 
complaints  were  addressed.  He  attended  to  everybody,  sel- 
dom offering  an  opinion,  still  less  a  counsel ;  but  he  listened 
with  attention,  faithfully  reported  what  was  said,  and  never 
showed  either  the  slightest  mark  of  ill  will  or  the  least  sign 
of  interest.* 

*  "  This  sketch  of  the  Due  de  Friuli,"  writes  my  father,  "  is  in  perfect  con- 
formity with  all  well-founded  contemporary  opinion.  Few  men  have  ever  been 
more  harsh,  more  cold,  more  selfish,  without  bearing  any  ill  will  to  others.  His 
justice,  his  honesty,  his  trustworthiness  were  incomparable.  He  had  great  tal- 
ent for  organization.  But  there  was  one  curious  fact  of  which  my  mother  seems 
to  have  been  unaware,  although  it  is  acknowledged  to  have  been  true :  he  did 
not  like  the  Emperor,  or,  at  any  rate,  judged  him  with  severity.  In  later  times 
he  was  wearied  out  by  Bonaparte's  temper,  and  still  more  by  his  system  of  gov- 
ernment, and  on  the  day  preceding  his  death  he  let  this  be  perceived,  even  by 
the  Emperor."  Marshal  Marmont,  who  knew  him  well,  has  left  a  sketch  of  bis 
character  which  bears  all  the  marks  of  truth  :  "  The  Emperor  felt  for  him  what 
in  such  a  man  was  almost  friendship,  for  he  wrote  thus  from  Haynau,  on  June  7, 
1813,  to  Mme.  de  Montesquieu :  *  The  death  of  the  Due  de  Friuli  grieves  me. 
It  is  the  first  time  for  twenty  years  that  he  has  not  divined  what  would  give  me 
pleasure.'  "-—P.  JL 


318  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Bonaparte,  who  had  great  skill  in  utilizing  men,  liked  to 
be  served  by  one  who  stood  so  completely  apart  from  others. 
There  was  no  danger  in  aggrandizing  such  a  man  as  this ;  he 
therefore  loaded  him  with  honors  and  riches.  His  gifts  to 
Savary,  which  were  also  very  considerable,  were  dictated  by 
a  different  motive.  "  That  is  a  man,"  he  used  to  say,  "who 
must  continually  be  bought;  he  would  belong  to  any  one 
who  would  give  him  a  crown  more  than  I  do."  And  yet, 
strange  to  say,  notwithstanding  this  feeling,  Bonaparte  trusted 
him,  or  at  any  rate  believed  the  tales  he  brought.  He  knew, 
in  truth,  that  Savary  would  refuse  him  nothing,  and  he  would 
say  of  him  sometimes,  "  If  I  ordered  Savary  to  rid  himself 
of  his  wife  and  children,  I  am  sure  he  would  not  hesitate." 

Savary,  though  an  object  of  general  terror,  was,  in  spite 
of  his  mode  of  life  and  his  actions,  hidden  or  otherwise,  not 
radically  a  bad  man.  Love  of  money  was  his  ruling  passion. 
He  had  no  military  talent,  and  was  even  accused  by  his  brave 
comrades  of  being  wanting  in  courage  on  the  battle-field. 
He  had,  therefore,  to  build  up  his  fortune  in  a  different 
fashion  from  that  of  his  companions  in  arms.*  He  per- 
ceived a  way  open  to  him  in  the  system  of  cunning  and 
tale-bearing  which  Bonaparte  favored;  and,  having  once 
entered  on  it,  it  was  not  possible  for  him  to  retrace  his  steps. 
He  was,  intrinsically,  better  than  his  reputation ;  that  is,  his 
first  impulses  were  superior  to  his  subsequent  action.  He 
was  not  wanting  in  natural  ability ;  could  be  kindled  to  a 
momentary  enthusiasm  of  the  imagination ;  was  ignorant, 
but  with  a  desire  for  information,  and  had  an  instinctively 
right  judgment.  He  was  rather  a  liar  than  a  deceitful  man ; 
harsh  in  manner,  but  very  timid  in  reality.  He  had  reasons 
of  his  own  for  knowing  Bonaparte  and  trembling  before 
him.  Nevertheless,  while  he  was  Minister,  he  ventured  on 

*  During  the  campaign,  a  large  coffer  of  gold  was  intrusted  to  him,  to  meet 
the  charges  of  the  secret  police  which  he  conducted  for  the  Emperor,  both  in 
the  army  and  in  the  conquered  cities.  He  discharged  this  trust  with  great  skill. 
In  no  place  was  a  word  spoken  or  a  deed  done  of  which  he  was  not  informed. 


THE  TEE  ATT  OF  PEACE.  319 

some  show  of  opposition,  and  then  appeared  to  entertain  a 
certain  desire  to  gain  public  esteem.  He,  perhaps,  like 
many  others,  owed  the  development  of  his  views  to  the 
times  he  lived  in,  which  stifled  the  better  side  of  his  charac- 
ter. The  Emperor  sedulously  cultivated  evil  passions  in  the 
men  who  served  him,  and  they  flourished  abundantly  under 
his  reign. 

To  return.  M.  de  Talleyrand's  negotiations  were  slowly 
advancing.  In  spite  of  every  obstacle,  he  succeeded,  by 
means  of  correspondence,  in  persuading  the  Emperor  to 
make  peace;  and  the  Tyrol,  that  stumbling-block  of  the 
treaty,  was  ceded  by  the  Emperor  Francis  to  the  King  of 
Bavaria.  When,  a  few  years  afterward,  the  Emperor  had 
quarreled  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  he  would  angrily  refer  to 
this  treaty,  and  complain  that  his  Minister  had  wrested  from 
him  the  fruit  of  victory,  and  brought  about  the  second  Aus- 
trian campaign  by  leaving  too  much  power  in  the  hands  of 
the  sovereign  of  that  country. 

The  Emperor  had  time,  before  leaving  Vienna,  to  receive 
a  deputation  from  four  of  the  mayors  of  the  city  of  Paris, 
who  came  to  congratulate  him  on  his  victories.  Shortly 
afterward  he  departed  for  Munich,  having  announced  that  he 
was  about  to  place  the  regal  crown  on  the  head  of  the  Elec- 
tor of  Bavaria,  and  to  conclude  the  marriage  of  Prince 
Eugene. 

The  Empress,  who  had  been  staying  at  Munich  for  some 
time,  was  overjoyed  at  a  union  which  would  ally  her  son 
with  the  greatest  houses  of  Europe.  She  greatly  wished  that 
Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  should  be  present  at  the  ceremony ; 
but  the  request  met  with  an  obstinate  refusal  from  Louis, 
and,  as  usual,  his  wife  was  obliged  to  submit. 

The  Emperor,  who  also  wished  to  introduce  a  kinswoman 
to  the  Bavarians,  summoned.  Mme.  Murat  to  Munich.  She 
came  thither  with  mingled  feelings.  The  pleasure  of  being 
regarded  as  a  person  of  importance,  and  of  displaying  her- 
self, was  damped  by  the  elevation  of  the  Beauharnais  family; 
25 


320  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KtiMUSAT. 

and  she  had  some  difficulty,  as  I  shall  presently  relate,  in 
concealing  her  dissatisfaction. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  returned  to  the  Court  after  signing  the 
treaty,  and  once  more  peace  seemed  restored  to  Europe — at 
any  rate,  for  a  time.  Peace  was  signed  on  Christmas  Day, 
1805. 

In  this  treaty  the  Emperor  of  Austria  recognized  the  Em- 
peror Napoleon  as  King  of  Italy.  He  ceded  the  Venetian 
States  to  the  kingdom  of  Italy.  He  recognized  the  Electors 
of  Bavaria  and  Wurtemburg  as  kings,  ceding  to  the  former 
several  principalities  and  the  Tyrol,  to  the  latter  a  number 
of  towns,  and  to  the  Elector  of  Baden  part  of  the  Brisgau. 

The  Emperor  Napoleon  undertook  to  obtain  the  princi- 
pality of  "Wurzburg  from  the  King  of  Bavaria  for  the  Arch- 
duke Ferdinand,  who  had  been  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany. 
The  Yenetian  States  were  to  be  handed  over  within  a  fort- 
night. These  were  the  principal  conditions  of  the  treaty. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

(1805-1806.) 

State  of  Paris  during  the  "War — Cambace'res — Le  Brun — Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte — 
Marriage  of  Eugene  de  Beauharnais— Bulletins  and  Proclamations— Admiration 
of  the  Emperor  for  the  Queen  of  Bavaria — Jealousy  of  the  Empress— M.  de  Nan- 

souty— Mme.  de .—Conquest  of  Naples— Position  and  Character  of  the 

Emperor. 

I  HAVE  already  described  the  dullness  and  depression  of 
Paris  during  this  campaign,  and  the  sufferings  of  every  class 
of  society  from  the  renewal  of  war.  Money  had  become 
still  more  scarce ;  in  fact,  it  attained  such  a  price  that,  being 
obliged  to  send  some  in  haste  to  my  husband,  I  had  to  pay 
ninety  francs  merely  for  obtaining  gold  for  a  thousand-franc 
bank-note.  Such  an  opportunity  of  spreading  and  increasing 
the  general  anxiety  was,  of  course,  turned  to  advantage  by 
the  malcontents.  Warned  by  former  experience,  and  alarmed 
by  the  imprudence  of  certain  utterances,  I  held  aloof  from 
every  one,  seeing  only  my  own  friends  and  persons  who  could 
not  involve  me  in  any  difficulty. 

When  the  Princes  or  Princesses  of  the  Imperial  family 
held  their  receptions,  I  went,  as  did  others,  to  pay  my  respects 
to  them,  and  also  to  the  Arch-Chancellor  Cambaceres,  who 
would  have  been  highly  displeased  at  any  neglect.  He  gave 
grand  dinners,  and  held  receptions  twice  a  week.  He  resided 
in  a  large  house  on  the  Carrousel,  which  has  since  been  con- 
verted into  the  Hotel  des  Cent  Suisses.*  At  seven  in  the 

*  This  hotel  was  pulled  down  in  the  reign  of  Louis  Philippe.— P.  R. 


322  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU8AT. 

evening  a  line  of  carriages  would  generally  stretch  across  the 
Carrousel,  and  Cambaceres  would  note  its  length  from  his 
window  with  delight.  Some  time  was  occupied  in  getting 
into  the  courtyard  and  reaching  the  foot  of  the  staircase.  At 
the  door  of  the  first  reception-room  an  attendant  announced 
the  guest's  name  in  a  loud  voice ;  this  was  repeated  until  the 
presence-chamber  was  reached.  There  an  immense  crowd 
would  be  collected;  there  were  two  or  three  rows  of  wo- 
men ;  the  men  stood  close  together,  forming  a  sort  of  passage 
from  one  angle  of  the  room  to  the  opposite  corner.  Up 
and  down  this  walked  Cambaceres  with  great  gravity,  cov- 
ered with  decorations,  and  usually  wearing  all  his  orders 
and  diamonds;  on  his  head  an  enormous  powdered  wig. 
He  kept  on  making  civil  little  speeches  right  and  left. 
When  we  felt  quite  sure  he  had  seen  us,  especially  if  he  had 
spoken,  it  was  the  custom  to  retire,  and  thus  make  room  for 
others.  We  frequently  had  to  wait  a  long  time  for  our  car- 
riages, and  the  surest  way  to  be  agreeable  to  Cambaceres  was 
to  tell  him,  the  next  time,  of  the  inconvenience  caused  by  the 
numberless  vehicles  in  the  Place  all  crowding  toward  his 
house. 

Fewer  persons  went  to  the  receptions  of  the  Arch-Trea- 
surer Le  Brun,  who  seemed  to  attach  less  importance  to 
these  outward  observances,  and  lived  quietly.  But,  although 
he  had  not  the  foibles  of  his  colleague,  he  was  also  deficient 
in  some  of  his  qualities.  Cambaceres  was  a  kind-hearted 
man ;  he  received  petitions  graciously,  and,  if  he  promised 
to  support  them,  his  word  could  be  relied  on.  Le  Brun's 
only  care  was  to  amass  a  fortune,  which  became  considerable. 
He  was  a  selfish,  cunning  old  man,  who  never  did  any  good 
to  anybody. 

The  member  of  the  Imperial  family  whom  I  saw  most 
frequently  was  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte.  People  came  to  her 
house  of  an  evening  to  hear  the  news. 

In  December,  1805,  a  report  having  been  spread  that  the 
English  were  likely  to  descend  on  the  Dutch  coast,  Louis 


LE  BRUN—MME.   LOUIS  BONAPARTE.  323 

Bonaparte  received  commands  to  travel  through  Holland, 
and  to  inspect  the  Army  of  the  North.  His  absence,  which 
gave  a  little  more  freedom  to  his  wife,  and  was  a  relief  to 
his  household,  who  held  him  in  awe  and  aversion,  enabled 
Mme.  Louis  to  pass  her  evenings  pleasantly.  Music  and 
drawing  at  a  large  table  in  the  center  of  the  salon  were  the 
chief  amusements.  Mme.  Louis  had  a  great  taste  for  the 
arts :  she  composed  charming  ballads ;  she  painted  well ;  she 
liked  the  society  of  artists.  Her  only  fault,  perhaps,  was  in 
not  maintaining  the  ceremonious  demeanor  in  her  house  de- 
manded by  the  rank  to  which  she  had  been  elevated.  She 
always  remained  on  intimate  terms  with  her  schoolfellows, 
and  with  the  young  married  women  who  habitually  visited 
her,  and  her  manners  retained  something  of  the  freedom  of 
those  school-days.  This  gave  rise  to  remark  and  censure.* 

After  a  long  silence  respecting  the  movements  of  the 
army,  which  produced  general  uneasiness,  Le  Brun,  aide-de- 
camp to  the  Emperor,  and  a  son  of  the  Arch-Treasurer,  was 
dispatched  from  the  battle-field  of  Austerlitz,  and  arrived 
one  evening  with  news  of  the  victory,  of  the  succeeding  ar- 
mistice, and  of  the  well-founded  hope  of  peace.  The  news 
was  announced  at  all  the  theatres,  and  posted  up  everywhere 

*  Mme.  de  Remusat's  feelings  toward  Queen  Hortense  and  her  opinion  of 
her  character  were  lasting;  for,  some  years  later,  on  July  12,  1812,  she  thus 
writes  to  her  husband : 

"  Speaking  of  the  Queen,  I  can  not  find  words  in  which  to  tell  you  the  plea- 
sure I  take  in  her  society.  She  is  really  angelic  in  disposition,  and  completely 

different  from  what  is  generally  supposed.  M.  F ,  who  when  he  came  was 

full  of  prejudice  against  her,  is  quite  captivated.  She  is  so  true,  so  pure- 
hearted,  so  perfectly  ignorant  of  evil ;  there  is  about  her  so  sweet  a  melancholy ; 
she  seemed  so  resigned  to  whatever  may  happen,  that  it  is  impossible  not  to  be 
deeply  impressed  by  her.  Her  health  is  good ;  she  dislikes  this  rainy  weather, 
because  she  is  fond  of  walking  ;  she  reads  a  great  deal,  and  would  like  to  make 
up  for  the  defects  of  her  education  in  certain  respects.  Her  children's  tutor 
makes  her  work  hard ;  sometimes  she  laughs  at  the  pains  she  takes,  and  she 
is  right.  Nevertheless,  I  wish  a  more  enlightened  person  were  directing  her 
studies.  She  has  reached  an  age  when  study  should  be  pursued  rather  to  teach 
us  to  think  than  to  know,  and  history  should  not  be  learned  at  five  and  twenty 
as  it  is  at  ten  years  old."— P.  R. 


324  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU8AT. 

on  the  following  day.  It  produced  a  great  effect,  and  dis- 
pelled the  gloom  and  apathy  of  Paris. 

It  was  impossible  not  to  be  elated  by  so  great  a  success, 
and  not  to  take  the  side  of  glory  and  of  fortune.  The 
French  were  carried  away  by  the  description  of  the  victory, 
to  which  nothing  was  wanting,  since  it  terminated  the  war ; 
and  this  time  again  there  was  no  need  to  prescribe  public 
rejoicing :  the  nation  identified  itself  with  the  success  of  its 
army. 

I  look  upon  this  period  as  the  zenith  of  Bonaparte's  good 
fortune,  for  his  mighty  deeds  were  made  their  own  by  the 
bulk  of  his  people.  Afterward,  doubtless,  he  increased  in 
power  and  in  authority,  but  he  had  to  bespeak  enthusiasm, 
and,  though  he  sometimes  succeeded  in  enforcing  it,  the 
efforts  he  was  obliged  to  make  must  have  lessened  the  value 
of  the  applause. 

In  the  midst  of  the  pride  and  delight  displayed  by  the 
city  of  Paris,  it  may  well  be  believed  that  the  great  bodies 
of  the  State  and  the  public  officers  did  not  neglect  the  oppor- 
tunity of  expressing  the  general  admiration  in  high-flown 
language.  "When  we  now  read  the  speeches  delivered  on 
the  occasion  in  the  Senate  and  the  Tribunate,  the  orations  of 
prefects  and  mayors,  the  pastoral  letters  of  bishops,  one  won- 
ders if  it  be  possible  that  a  human  head  should  not  be  turned 
by  such  excess  of  praise.  Every  glory  of  the  past  was  to 
fade  before  that  of  Bonaparte ;  the  greatest  names  were  to 
drop  into  obscurity  ;  fame  would  thenceforth  blush  at  what 
she  had  formerly  proclaimed,  etc.,  etc. 

On  the  31st  of  December  the  Tribunate  was  assembled, 
and  Fabre  de  PAude,  the  President,  announced  the  return 
of  a  deputation  which  had  been  sent  to  the  Emperor.  Its 
members  had  brought  back  a  glowing  account  of  the  mar- 
vels they  had  witnessed.  A  great  number  of  flags  had  also 
arrived.  The  Emperor  bestowed  eight  on  the  city  of  Paris, 
eight  on  the  Tribunate,  and  fifty-four  on  the  Senate ;  the 
entire  Tribunate  was  to  present  the  latter. 


SCENE  IN  THE  TRIBUNATE.  325 

On  the  conclusion  of  the  President's  speech,  a  crowd  of 
tribunes  rushed  forward  to  propose  what  was  called  des  mo- 
tions de  vceux.  One  of  them  moved  that  a  gold  medal  should 
be  struck ;  another,  that  a  public  monument  should  be  erect- 
ed ;  that  the  Emperor  should  receive  the  honors  of  a  triumph, 
after  the  old  fashion  of  imperial  Rome ;  that  the  whole  city 
of  Paris  should  go  forth  to  meet  him.  "Language,"  said 
one  member,  "  can  not  attain  such  height  of  grandeur,  nor 
express  the  emotions  it  calls  forth." 

Carrion-Nisas  proposed  that,  on  the  proclamation  of  the 
general  peace,  the  sword  worn  by  the  Emperor  at  the  battle 
of  Austerlitz  should  be  solemnly  consecrated.  Each  speaker 
endeavored  to  surpass  the  others,  and  certainly,  during  this 
sitting,  which  lasted  several  hours,  all  that  flattery  could  sug- 
gest to  the  imagination  was  exhausted.  And  yet  this  very 
Tribunate  was  a  source  of  anxiety  to  the  Emperor,  because 
it  contained  in  itself  a  semblance  of  liberty ;  and  he  subse- 
quently abolished  it  in  order  to  consolidate  his  despotic 
power,  even  in  the  smallest  outward  signs.  When  Bona- 
parte "  eliminated "  the  Tribunate  (this  was  the  technical 
expression  for  that  measure),  he  did  not  shrink  from  using 
these  words :  "  This  is  my  final  break  with  the  Republic." 

The  Tribunate,  having  arranged  to  carry  the  flags  to  the 
Senate  on  the  1st  of  January,  1806,  decided  that  on  the  same 
occasion  it  should  be  proposed  to  erect  a  column.  The  Sen- 
ate hastened  to  pass  a  decree  to  this  effect,  and  also  decreed 
that  the  Emperor's  letter,  which  had  accompanied  the  flags, 
should  be  engraved  on  marble  and  placed  in  the  Hall  of  As- 
sembly. The  senators  on  this  occasion  rose  to  the  height  at- 
tained by  the  tribunes. 

Preparations  were  now  made  for  the  rejoicings  which 
were  to  take  place  on  the  return  of  the  Emperor.  M.  de 
Remusat  sent  orders,  through  me,  for  the  performance  of 
various  pieces  containing  appropriate  passages  at  the  theatres. 
The  Theatre  Frangais  having  selected  "  Gaston  et  Bayard," 
some  slight  changes  were  made  by  the  police  in  certain  lines 


326,  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RASMUS  AT. 

that  were  deemed  inadmissible.*  The  Opera  House  pre- 
pared a  new  piece. 

Meanwhile  the  Emperor,  after  receiving  the  signature  of 
the  peace,  was  preparing  to  quit  Vienna,  and  addressed  its 
inhabitants  in  a  proclamation  full  of  compliments,  both  to 
themselves  and  to  their  sovereign.  It  ended  thus  : 

"  I  have  shown  myself  little  among  you,  not  from  disdain 
or  a  vain  pride,  but  I  did  not  wish  to  interfere  with  the  feel- 
ings due  to  your  sovereign,  with  whom  it  was  my  intention 
to  make  a  prompt  peace." 

We  have  already  seen  what  were  the  Emperor's  real  mo- 
tives for  remaining  in  retirement  at  Schonbrunn. 

Although,  in  point  of  fact,  the  French  army  had  been 
kept  under  tolerable  discipline  while  in  Yienna,  there  can  be 
no  doubt  that  the  inhabitants  were  overjoyed  at  the  depar- 
ture of  the  guests  they  had  been  obliged  to  receive,  to  lodge, 
and  to  feed  liberally.  To  give  an  idea  of  the  consideration 
with  which  our  vanquished  enemies  were  forced  to  treat  us, 
it  will  be  sufficient  to  state  that  Generals  Junot  f  and  Bes- 
sieres,  who  were  quartered  on  Prince  Esterhazy,  were  daily 
supplied  from  Hungary  with  every  delicacy  of  the  table, 
including  Tokay.  This  was  due  to  the  generosity  of  the 
Prince,  who  defrayed  the  whole  cost. 

I  recollect  hearing  M.  de  Remusat  relate  that,  on  the  ar- 
rival of  the  Emperor  at  Yienna,  the  Imperial  cellars  were 
explored  in  search  of  this  same  Tokay,  and  much  surprise 
was  expressed  that  not  a  single  bottle  was  forthcoming ;  all 
had  been  carefully  removed  by  the  orders  of  Francis. 

The  Emperor  reached  Munich  on  the  31st  of  December, 

*  The  line  "Et  suivre  les  Bourbons,  c'est  marcher  a  la  gloire"  (To  follow 
the  Bourbons  is  to  march  to  glory),  was  replaced  by  "  Et  suivre  les  Frangais, 
c'est  marcher  a  la  gloire"  (To  follow  the  French  is  to  march  to  glory). 

f  Junot  was  a  true  soldier  of  fortune.  He  had  a  good  deal  of  natural 
humor.  On  one  occasion  the  exclusiveness  of  the  old  French  nobility  was 
spoken  of  before  him.  "  And  why,"  said  he,  "  are  all  these  people  so  angered 
at  our  elevation  ?  The  only  difference  between  them  and  me  is  that  they  are 
descendants,  while  I  am  an  ancestor ! " 


BULLETINS  AND  PROCLAMATIONS.  327 

and  on  the  next  day  proclaimed  the  Elector  of  Bavaria  King. 
He  announced  this  in  a  letter  to  the  Senate,  in  which  he  also 
made  known  his  adoption  of  Prince  Eugene,  and  the  mar- 
riage of  the  latter,  which  was  to  take  place  before  the  Em- 
peror's return  to  Paris. 

Prince  Eugene  hastened  to  Munich,  having  first  taken 
possession  of  the  States  of  Venice,  and  reassured  his  new 
subjects,  as  far  as  possible,  by  dignified  and  moderate  proc- 
lamations. 

The  Emperor  felt  himself  bound  also  to  bestow  some 
praise  on  the  army  of  Italy.  A  bulletin  says :  "  The  Italians 
have  displayed  great  spirit.  The  Emperor  has  frequently 
said :  '  Why  should  not  my  Italian  people  appear  gloriously 
on  the  world's  stage  ?  They  are  full  of  intelligence  and  pas- 
sion ;  it  will  be  easy  henceforth  to  give  them  soldierly  quali- 
ties.' ':  He  made  a  few  more  proclamations  to  his  army,  in 
his  usual  turgid  style,  but  they  are  said  to  have  produced  a 
great  effect  on  the  army. 

He  issued  one  decree  which  would  have  been  good  if  it 
had  been  put  into  execution.  "We  adopt,"  he  said,  "the 
children  of  those  generals,  officers,  and  privates  who  lost 
their  lives  at  the  battle  of  Austerlitz.  They  shall  be  brought 
up  at  Rambouillet  and  at  St.  Germain,  and  placed  out*  in  the 
world,  or  suitably  married  by  our  care.  To  their  own  names 
they  shall  add  that  of  Napoleon." 

The  Elector,  or  rather  the  King,  of  Bavaria  is  a  younger 
son  of  the  house  of  Deux-Ponts,  who  came  to  the  Electorate 
through  the  extinction  of  that  branch  of  his  family  which 
was  governing  Bavaria.  In  the  reign  of  Louis  XVI.  he  was 
sent  to  France  a  ad  placed  in  the  King's  service.  He  soon 
obtained  a  regiment,  and  resided  for  a  considerable  time*  either 
in  Paris  or  in  garrison  at  one  of  our  towns.  He  became 
attached  to  France,  and  left  behind  him  the  recollection  of 
much  kindness  of  disposition  and  cordiality  of  manner.  He 
was  known  as  Prince  Max.  He  declined,  however,  to  marry 
in  France.  The  Prince  de  Conde  offered  him  his  daughter ; 


328  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

but  his  father  and  his  uncle,  the  Elector,  objected  to  the 
match  on  the  grounds  that  Prince  Max,  not  being  rich, 
would  probably  have  to  make  canonesses  of  some  of  his 
daughters,  and  that  the  admixture  in  their  veins  of  the  blood 
of  Louis  XIY.  with  that  of  Mme.  de  Montespan  would  be 
an  obstacle  to  their  admittance  into  certain  chapters. 

When,  at  a  later  period,  this  Prince  succeeded  to  the 
Electorate,  he  always  retained  an  affectionate  remembrance 
of  France,  and  a  sincere  attachment  to  her  people.  Having 
become  King  by  the  will  of  the  Emperor,  he  took  pains  to 
prove  his  gratitude  by  a  splendid  welcome,  and  he  received 
all  the  French  with  extreme  kindness.  It  may  well  be  im- 
agined that  not  for  one  moment  did  he  dream  of  declining 
the  proposed  marriage  for  his  daughter.  The  young  Prin- 
cess was  tllen  seventeen  or  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  pos- 
sessed attractive  qualities,  as  well  as  personal  charms.  The 
marriage,  which  was  due  to  political  reasons,  became  the 
source  of  uninterrupted  happiness  to  Eugene.  Princess 
Augusta  of  Bavaria  attached  herself  warmly  to  the  husband 
chosen  for  her ;  she  aided  him  in  no  small  measure  to  win 
the  hearts  of  the  Italians.  With  beauty,  sense,  piety,  and 
amiability,  she  could  not  fail  to  be  tenderly  beloved  by  Prince 
Eugene,  and  at  the  present  day  they  are  settled  in  Bavaria, 
and  enjoy  the  happiness  of  a  perfect  union.* 

*  Prince  Eugene  de  Beauharnais  died  in  1824.  The  Emperor  announced 
his  marriage  to  him  in  the  following  terms,  in  a  letter  dated  Munich,  19  Nivose, 
year  14  (31st  December,  1805):  "My  cousin,  I  have  arrived  at  Munich.  I  have 
arranged  a  marriage  for  you  with  Princess  Augusta.  It  has  been  announced. 
The  Princess  paid  me  a  visit  this  morning,  and  I  conversed  with  her  for  a  con- 
siderable time.  She  is  very  pretty.  You  will  see  her  portrait  on  the  tazza  which 
accompanies  this,  but  she  is  much  better-looking."  The  Emperor's  affection  for 
the  Viceroy  of  Italy  was  extended  in  full  measure  to  the  Princess,  who  from  the 
first  had  impressed  him  so  favorably,  and  his  letters  are  full  of  solicitude  for  her 
health  and  happiness.  Thus,  he  writes  to  her  from  Stuttgart,  on  the  17th  of 
January,  1806:  "My  daughter,  your  letter  to  me  is  as  charming  as  yourself. 
My  feelings  of  affection  for  you  will  but  increase  every  day ;  I  know  this  by  the 
pleasure  I  feel  in  recalling  all  your  good  qualities,  and  by  my  desire  to  receive 
frequent  assurances  from  yourself  that  you  are  pleased  with  everybody  and 


THE  EMPEROR  AND  THE  QUEEN  OF  BAVARIA.  329 

During  the  Emperor's  stay  at  Munich,  he  took  it  into  his 
head,  by  way  of  recreation  after  his  labors  of  the  past  months, 
to  indulge  a  fancy,  partly  political,  partly  amorous,  for  the 
Queen  of  Bavaria.  That  Princess,  who  was  the  King's  sec- 
ond wife,  without  being  very  beautiful,  was  of  an  elegant 
figure  and  pleasing  though  dignified  manners.  I  think  the 
Emperor  pretended  to  be  in  love  with  her.  The  lookers-on 
said  it  was  amusing  to  watch  the  struggle  between  his  impe- 
rious temper  and  rude  manners  and  the  desire  to  please  a 
Princess  accustomed  to  that  kind  of  etiquette  which  is  never 
relaxed  in  Germany  on  any  occasion  whatever.  The  Queen 
of  Bavaria  contrived  to  exact  respect  from  her  strange  ad- 
mirer, and  yet  seemed  to  be  amused  with  his  devotion.  The 

happy  in  your  husband.  Among  all  my  other  cares,  there  will  be  none  dearer 
to  me  than  those  which  may  insure  the  happiness  of  my  children.  Believe  me, 
Augusta,  I  love  you  as  a  father,  and  I  rely  on  your  filial  tenderness.  Take  care 
of  yourself  on  your  journey,  and  also  in  the  new  climate  to  which  you  are  travel- 
ing, by  taking  all  necessary  rest.  You  have  had  much  to  try  you  for  a  month 
past.  Remember  that  I  must  not  have  you  ill." 

A  few  months  later  he  writes  to  Prince  Eugene :  "  My  son,  you  work  too 
hard ;  your  life  is  too  monotonous.  It  is  good  for  you,  because  your  work  should 
be  your  recreation ;  but  you  have  a  young  wife,  who  is  just  now  in  a  delicate 
state.  I  think  you  should  contrive  to  pass  your  evenings  with  her,  and  to  gather 
some  society  round  you.  Why  don't  you  go  to  the  theatre  once  a  week  in  a 
state  box  ?  I  think  you  should  have  also  a  small  hunting  establishment,  and 
hunt  at  least  once  a  week ;  I  would  willingly  devote  a  grant  to  this  object. 
There  must  be  more  gayety  in  your  house ;  it  is  necessary  for  your  wife's  happi- 
ness and  your  own  health.  A  great  deal  of  work  can  be  got  through  in  a  short 
tune.  I  am  leading  the  life  that  you  lead,  but  I  have  an  old  wife  who  does  not 
need  me  for  her  amusements ;  I  have  also  more  work  than  you,  yet  I  can  say 
truly  I  take  more  pleasure  and  diversion  than  you  do.  A  young  wife  requires 
amusement,  especially  when  in  the  state  of  health  she  now  is.  You  liked  plea- 
sure pretty  well  in  former  times ;  you  must  return  to  it.  What  you  might  not 
choose  to  do  for  yourself,  you  must  do  out  of  duty  toward  the  Princess.  I  have 
just  established  myself  at  Saint  Cloud.  Stephanie  and  the  Prince  of  Baden  get 
on  pretty  well  together.  I  spent  the  last  two  days  at  Marshal  Bessieres's ;  we 
behaved  like  lads  of  fifteen.  You  were  formerly  in  the  habit  of  rising  early ; 
you  should  return  to  that  custom.  This  would  not  disturb  the  Princess,  if  you 
retired  to  rest  with  her  at  eleven  o'clock ;  and,  by  leaving  off  work  at  six  in  the 
evening,  you  would  still  have  had  ten  hours  for  work,  if  you  rise  at  seven  or 
eight  o'clock."— P.  R. 


330  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

Empress  considered  her  to  be  more  coquettish  than  was  de- 
sirable, and  the  whole  business  made  her  anxious  to  get  away 
quickly  from  the  Bavarian  Court,  and  spoilt  the  pleasure  she 
would  otherwise  have  felt  in  her  son's  marriage. 

At  the  same  time,  Mme.  Murat  took  offense  because  the 
new  Yice-Queen,  who  had  become  the  adopted  daughter  of 
Napoleon,  took  precedence  of  her  on  ceremonial  occasions. 
She  feigned  illness  in  order  to  avoid  what  seemed  to  her  an 
affront,  and  her  brother  was  obliged  to  get  into  a  rage  with 
her,  to  prevent  her  from  too  plainly  exhibiting  her  discontent. 
Had  we  not  actually  witnessed  the  rapid  rise  of  certain  pre- 
tensions in  those  who  are  the  favorites  of  fortune,  we  should 
have  been  astonished  at  these  sudden  bursts  of  temper  in 
princes  of  so  recent  a  date  that  they  could  scarcely  yet  have 
become  accustomed  to  the  advantages  and  rights  appertain- 
ing to  their  rank.  This  spectacle  we  have,  however,  beheld 
so  frequently  that  we  are  not  surprised,  but  merely  admit 
that  no  human  passion  is  so  easily  aroused,  or  grows  so  rap- 
idly, as  vanity. 

Bonaparte  had  always  been  well  aware  of  this,  and  he 
used  the  knowledge  as  his  surest  method  of  governing. 
"While  at  Munich,  he  made  many  promotions  in  the  army. 
He  gave  a  regiment  of  Carbineers  to  his  brother-in-law, 
Prince  Borghese.  He  rewarded  several  officers  by  promo- 
tion, or  by  the  Legion  of  Honor.  Among  others,  he  created 
M.  de  Nansouty,  my  brother-in-law,  grand  officer  of  the 
order.  He  was  a  brave  man,  esteemed  in  the  army,  straight- 
forward, and  endowed  with  a  keen  sense  of  duty,  not  very 
common,  unfortunately,  among  our  military  chiefs.  He  left 
behind  him  in  a  foreign  country  a  reputation  which  is  very 
honorable  to  his  family.* 

The  Emperor's  military  Court,  encouraged  by  their  mas- 
ter's example,  and,  like  him,  flushed  with  victory,  took  great 

*  On  the  occasion  of  the  first  return  of  the  King,  his  Majesty  gave  M.  de 
Nansouty  the  command  of  a  company  of  Gray  Musketeers.  He  fell  ill  shortly 
afterward,  and  died  one  month  before  the  20th  of  March,  1815. 


MME.  DE  C .  331 

pleasure  in  the  society  of  the  ladies  who  had  accompanied 
the  Empress.  It  seemed  as  if  Love  was  now  to  have  his 
share  of  power  in  a  world  which  had  hitherto  somewhat 
neglected  him ;  but  it  must  be  admitted  that  not  much  time 
was  allowed  to  him  for  the  establishment  of  his  reign,  and 
his  attacks  were  of  necessity  rather  brisk. 

"We  may  date  from  this  period  the  passion  which  the 

beautiful  Mme.  de  C inspired  in  M.  de  Caulaincourt. 

She  had  been  appointed  Lady-in-Waiting  in  the  summer  of 
1805.  When  quite  young  she  had  married  her  cousin,  who 
was  at  that  time  equerry  to  the  Emperor,  and  she  drew  all 
eyes  on  herself  by  her  striking  beauty.  M.  de  Caulaincourt 
fell  desperately  in  love  with  her,  and  this  feeling,  which  was 
for  several  years  more  or  less  reciprocal,  deterred  him  from 

thinking  of  marriage.  Mme.  de  C became  more  and 

more  estranged  from  her  husband,  and  at  last  took  advantage 
of  the  law  of  divorce.*  When  the  return  of  the  King  con- 
demned M.  de  Caulaincourt,  otherwise  the  Duke  of  Yicenza, 
to  a  life  of  obscurity,  she  resolved  to  share  his  ill  fortune, 
and  married  him. 

I  have  already  said  that  the  Emperor  announced  during 
this  campaign  his  consent  to  the  evacuation  of  the  kingdom 
of  Naples  by  our  troops ;  but  before  long  he  again  quarreled 
with  the  sovereign  of  that  kingdom,  either  because  the  King 
did  not  exactly  carry  out  the  treaty  that  had  been  concluded 
with  him,  and  was  too  much  under  the  influence  of  the  Eng- 
lish, who  were  continually  threatening  his  ports,  or  because 
the  Emperor  wished  to  accomplish  his  project  of  subjecting 
the  whole  of  Italy  to  his  own  authority.  He  also  thought, 
no  doubt,  that  it  would  be  his  best  policy  to  eject  the  house 
of  Bourbon  by  degrees  from  the  thrones  of  the  Continent. 
Be  this  as  it  may,  according  to  custom,  and  without  any  pre- 
vious communication,  France  learned  by  an  order  of  the  day, 

*  The  Duchess  of  Vicenza  died  at  a  very  advanced  age  in  1878,  leaving  be- 
hind her  the  memory  of  an  excellent  and  distinguished  woman.  M.  de  Caulain- 
oourt  had  died  fifty  years  earlier,  in  1828.— P.  R. 


332  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

dated  from  the  Imperial  camp  at  Schonbrunn,  6th  Nivose, 
year  14,*  that  the  French  army  was  marching  to  the  con- 
quest of  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  and  would  be  under  the 
command  of  Joseph  Bonaparte,  who  accordingly  repaired 
thither. 

"  We  will  pardon  no  longer,"  so  runs  the  proclamation. 
"  The  dynasty  of  Naples  has  ceased  to  reign.  Its  existence 
is  incompatible  with  the  repose  of  Europe  and  the  honor  of 
my  crown.  Soldiers,  forward!  .  .  .  and  delay  not  to  tell 
me  that  all  Italy  is  subject  to  my  laws  or  those  of  my 

allies."  f 

It  is  in  this  summary  tone  that  Bonaparte,  fresh  from 
signing  treaties  of  peace,  began  another  war,  gave  new  of- 

*  27th  of  December,  1805.— P.  R. 

f  The  following  is  the  proclamation,  which  is  to  the  effect  indicated  by  the 
Memoirs,  but  in  still  rougher  language : 

"  Soldiers !  for  ten  years  I  have  done  all  I  could  to  save  the  King  of  Naples ; 
he  has  done  everything  to  ruin  himself.  After  the  battles  of  Dego,  of  Mondovi, 
and  of  Lodi,  he  could  offer  me  but  feeble  resistance.  I  trusted  to  his  word,  and 
I  was  generous  toward  him. 

"  When  the  second  coalition  was  dissolved  at  Marengo,  the  King  of  Naples, 
who  had  been  the  first  to  declare  this  unjust  war,  was  abandoned  at  Luneville  by 
his  allies,  and  remained  alone  and  defenseless.  He  appealed  to  me ;  for  the 
second  time  I  forgave  him.  But  a  few  months  ago  you  were  at  the  gates  of 
Naples.  I  had  sufficient  reasons  for  suspecting  the  treason  that  was  in  prepa- 
ration, and  for  avenging  the  insults  that  had  been  offered  me.  Once  more  I 
acted  generously.  I  recognized  the  neutrality  of  Naples;  I  ordered  you  to 
evacuate  the  kingdom ;  and  for  a  third  time  the  house  of  Naples  was  strength- 
ened and  saved. 

"Shall  we  forgive  a  fourth  time?  Shall  we  rely  a  fourth  time  on  a  Court 
without  faith,  without  honor,  without  sense  ?  No,  no !  The  dynasty  of  Naples 
has  ceased  to  reign.  Its  existence  is  incompatible  with  the  repose  of  Europe 
and  the  honor  of  my  crown. 

"  Forward,  soldiers !  Cast  into  the  ocean,  if  indeed  they  wait  your  arrival, 
the  weakly  battalions  of  the  tyrants  of  the  seas.  Show  forth  to  the  world  how 
we  punish  perjury.  Make  no  delay  in  informing  me  that  all  Italy  is  under  my 
laws,  or  those  of  my  allies ;  that  the  most  beautiful  country  on  earth  is  free 
from  the  yoke  of  perfidious  men ;  that  the  sanctity  of  treaties  is  avenged ;  and 
that  the  manes  of  my  brave  soldiers,  who  were  massacred  in  Sicilian  ports  on 
their  return  from  Egypt,  after  they  had  escaped  the  dangers  of  shipwreck,  of 
deserts,  and  of  battle,  are  at  last  appeased." — P.  R. 


CONQUEST  OF  NAPLES.  333 

fense  to  the  sovereigns  of  Europe,  and  incited  the  English 
Government  to  stir  up  fresh  enemies  against  himself. 

On  the  25th  of  January  the  Court  of  Naples,  under  the 
pressure  of  a  skillful  and  victorious  enemy,  embarked  for 
Palermo,  abandoning  the  capital  to  its  new  sovereign,  who 
would  soon  take  possession  of  it.  Meanwhile  the  Emperor, 
having  been  present  at  the  marriage  of  Prince  Eugene  on 
the  14th  of  January,  left  Munich,  and,  having  received  on 
his  way  through  Germany  the  honors  that  were  invariably 
offered  him  in  every  place,  reached  Paris  on  the  night  of 
the  26th  to  the  27th  of  January. 

I  have  thought  it  well  to  conclude  here  the  history  of 
what  was  to  me  Bonaparte's  second  epoch,  because,  as  I  said 
before,  I  look  upon  the  close  of  this  first  campaign  as  the 
highest  pitch  of  his  glory;  and  for  this  reason,  that  now 
the  French  people  again  consented  to  bear  their  share  in  it. 

Nothing,  perhaps,  in  the  history  of  circumstances  and  of 
men,  can  be  compared  to  the  height  of  power  to  which  he 
attained  after  the  peace  of  Tilsit ;  but,  if  at  that  time  all 
Europe  bent  before  him,  the  spell  of  victory  had  been 
strangely  weakened  in  France,  and  our  armies,  although 
consisting  of  our  own  citizens,  were  beginning  to  be  aliens 
to  us. 

The  Emperor,  who  often  appreciated  things  with  mathe- 
matical accuracy,  was  well  aware  of  this ;  for,  on  his  return 
from  concluding  the  above  treaty,  I  heard  him  say,  "  Mili- 
tary glory,  which  lasts  so  long  in  history,  is  that  which  fades 
the  quickest  among  its  contemporaries.  All  our  recent  bat- 
tles have  not  produced  in  France  half  the  effect  of  the  one 
victory  of  Marengo." 

Had  he  carried  his  reflections  further,  he  would  have  seen 
that  the  people  who  are  governed  need  eventually  a  glory 
that  will  be  of  solid  use,  and  that  admiration  for  that  which 
bears  but  a  barren  brilliancy  is  soon  exhausted. 

In  1806  England  was  again  accused,  rightly  or  wrongly, 
of  inciting  enmity  against  us.  Supposing  her  to  be  with 


334  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

justice  jealous  of  our  returning  prosperity,  we  did  not  think 
it  impossible  that  she  might  endeavor  to  molest  us,  even  if 
we  had  in  perfect  good  faith  shown  every  sign  of  intended 
moderation.  We  did  not  think  the  Emperor  had  been  the 
cause  of  the  last  rupture  which  had  destroyed  the  treaty  of 
Amiens ;  and,  as  it  seemed  impossible  for  a  long  time  to 
come  to  compete  with  the  naval  power  of  the  English,  it 
did  not  appear  to  us  to  be  politically  wrong  to  endeavor  to 
balance  the  weight  which  commerce  gave  to  our  enemies  by 
the  constitution  given  to  Italy — that  is,  by  a  powerful  influ- 
ence on  the  Continent. 

With  such  feelings  as  these,  the  marvels  of  this  three 
months'  campaign  could  not  fail  to  impress  us  deeply.  Aus- 
tria had  been  conquered ;  the  united  armies  of  the  two 
greatest  sovereigns  of  Europe  had  fled  before  ours ;  the 
Czar  had  retreated ;  the  Emperor  Francis  had  personally 
sued  for  peace — a  peace  as  yet  bearing  signs  of  moderation  ; 
kings  had  been  created  by  our  victories  ;  the  daughter  of  a 
crowned  sovereign  had  been  given  in  marriage  to  a  mere 
French  gentleman ;  finally,  the  prompt  return  of  the  con- 
queror, which  gave  hopes  of  permanent  peace,  and  perhaps 
also  a  desire  to  retain  our  illusions  respecting  our  master — a 
desire  inspired  by  human  vanity,  for  men  do  not  like  to 
blush  for  him  by  whom  they  are  ruled — all  these  things 
again  roused  national  admiration,  and  were  only  too  favor- 
able to  the  ambition  of  the  victor.  The  Emperor  perceived 
the  progress  he  had  made  in  popularity,  and  he  concluded, 
with  some  appearance  of  probability,  that  glory  would  make 
up  to  us  for  all  the  losses  we  were  about  to  sustain  at  the 
hands  of  despotism.  He  believed  that  Frenchmen  would 
not  murmur  were  but  their  slavery  brilliant,  and  that  we 
would  willingly  barter  all  the  liberty  that  the  Revolution 
had  so  hardly  won  for  us,  for  his  dazzling  military  success. 

Finally,  and  this  was  the  worst,  he  saw  in  war  a  means 
of  stifling  the  reflections  which  his  mode  of  government  was 
sure  sooner  or  later  to  evoke,  and  he  reserved  it  to  dazzle  us, 


POSITION  AND   CHARACTER   OF  THE  EMPEROR.  335 

or  at  least  to  reduce  us  to  silence.  As  he  felt  himself  per- 
fectly master  of  the  science  of  war,  he  had  no  fear  of  its  re- 
sults ;  and,  when  he  could  engage  in  it  with  such  immense 
armies  and  such  formidable  artillery,  he  felt  there  was  scarce- 
ly any  danger  to  himself.  Although  in  this  I  may  be  mis- 
taken, I  do  believe  that,  after  the  campaign  of  Austerlitz, 
war  was  rather  the  result  of  his  system  than  the  gratifica- 
tion of  his  taste.  The  first,  the  real  ambition  of  Napoleon 
was  for  power,  and  he  would  have  preferred  peace  if  it  could 
have  increased  his  authority.  There  is  a  tendency  in  the 
human  mind  to  bring  to  perfection  anything  with  which  it 
is  exclusively  occupied.  The  Emperor,  who  was  continually- 
bent  on  increasing  his  power  by  every  possible  means,  and 
who  was  becoming  accustomed  to  the  exercise  of  his  own  will 
on  every  occasion,  became  more  and  more  impatient  of  the 
slightest  opposition.  The  European  phalanxes  were  gradu- 
ally giving  way  before  him,  and  he  began  to  believe  that  he 
was  destined  to  regulate  the  affairs  of  every  continental  king- 
dom. He  looked  with  disdain  on  the  progress  of  the  age, 
regarding  the  French  Revolution,  which  was  so  solemn  a 
warning  to  sovereigns,  only  as  an  event  whose  results  he 
might  use  to  his  own  advantage ;  and  he  came  to  despise  the 
cry  for  liberty  which  for  twenty  years  had  been  uttered  at 
intervals  by  the  people.  He  was  persuaded  that  he  could,  at 
any  rate,  trick  them  by  accomplishing  the  destruction  of  what 
had  existed,  and  replacing  it  by  sudden  creations,  which  would 
appear  to  satisfy  that  longing  for  equality  which  he  believed 
with  reason  to  be  the  ruling  passion  of  the  time. 

He  tried  to  turn  the  French  Revolution  into  a  mere  freak 
of  fortune,  a  useless  disturbance  which  had  merely  upset  in- 
dividuals. How  often  has  he  not  made  use  of  these  specious 
words,  in  order  to  allay  apprehension  :  "  The  French  Revo- 
lution need  fear  nothing,  since  the  throne  of  the  Bourbons 
is  occupied  by  a  soldier  "  !  And  at  the  same  time  he  would 
assume  toward  kings  the  attitude  of  a  protector  of  thrones — 
"  for,"  he  would  say,  "  I  have  abolished  republics."  Mean- 
26 


336  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

while  he  was  dreaming  of  I  know  not  what  half -feudal  pro- 
ject, the  execution  of  which  must  inevitably  be  full  of  danger, 
since  it  drove  him  to  war,  and  had  besides  the  deplorable 
effect  of  diminishing  the  interest  he  ought  to  have  taken  in 
France  itself.  Our  country  soon  ceased  to  be  anything  more 
to  him  than  one  large  province  of  that  empire  which  he  de- 
sired to  bring  under  his  rule.  Less  interested  in  our  pros- 
perity than  in  our  grandeur,  which,  in  point  of  fact,  was  only 
his  own,  he  conceived  the  idea  of  making  every  foreign  sov- 
ereign a  feudatory  of  his  own  power.  He  believed  he  should 
attain  to  this  by  placing  members  of  his  family  on  the  various 
thrones  which  at  the  time  actually  sprang  from  himself  ;  and 
we  may  assure  ourselves  that  this  was  really  his  project,  by 
attentively  reading  the  form  of  oath  which  he  exacted  from 
the  kings  or  princes  created  by  him.  He  sometimes  said : 
"  It  is  my  intention  to  reach  such  a  point  that  the  kings  of 
Europe  shall  be  forced,  each  one  of  them,  to  have  a  palace  in 
Paris ;  and,  at  the  time  of  the  coronation  of  an  Emperor  of 
the  French,  they  shall  take  up  their  residence  in  it,  be  present 
at  the  ceremony,  and  render  it  more  imposing  by  their  hom- 
age." This,  it  seems  to  me,  was  a  sufficiently  plain  decla- 
ration of  his  intention  of  renewing  in  1806  the  empire  of 
Charlemagne. 

But  times  were  changed,  and,  as  the  light  of  knowledge 
spread,  the  people  became  capable  of  forming  a  judgment  as 
to  the  mode  in  which  they  ought  to  be  governed.  Besides 
this,  the  Emperor  perceived  that  the  nobles  could  never  again 
exercise  influence  over  the  people,  which  had  often  been  an 
obstacle  to  the  authority  of  our  kings  ;  and  he  conceived  the 
idea  that  it  was  from  popular  encroachment  he  must  defend 
himself,  and  that  the  spirit  of  the  age  required  him  to  take  a 
contrary  course  to  that  which  for  centuries  past  had  been  the 
custom  of  kings. 

It  was  the  fact  that,  whereas  formerly  the  nobles  had  al- 
most always  hampered  the  royal  authority,  at  the  present 
time  some  intermediary  creation  was  needed  by  that  very 


POSITION  AND   CHARACTER   OF  THE  EMPEROR.   337 

authority,  which,  in  this  age  of  liberal  opinions,  would  natu- 
rally lean  to  the  side  of  the  sovereign,  and  retard  the  march 
of  pretensions  which,  from  being  merely  popular,  had  now 
become  national.  From  this  came  the  reestablishment  of  a 
nobility,  and  the  renewal  of  certain  privileges  which  were 
always  prudently  distributed  among  distinguished  members 
of  the  ancient  nobility,  and  plebeians  who  had  been  ennobled 
by  an  act  of  the  Imperial  will. 

All  these  things  are  a  proof  that  the  Emperor  entertained 
this  project  of  a  new  kind  of  feudality  fashioned  in  accord- 
ance with  his  own  ideas.  But,  besides  the  obstacles  which 
England  continually  placed  in  his  way,  there  was  another, 
absolutely  inherent  in  his  own  character.  There  would  seem 
to  have  been  in  him  two  different  men.  The  one,  rather 
gigantic  than  great,  but  nevertheless  prompt  to  conceive  and 
also  prompt  to  execute,  laid  from  time  to  time  some  of  the 
foundations  of  the  plan  he  had  formed.  This  man,  actuated 
by  one  single  idea,  untouched  by  any  secondary  impression 
likely  to  interfere  with  his  projects,  had  he  but  taken  for  his 
aim  the  good  of  mankind,  would,  with  such  abilities  as  he 
displayed,  have  become  the  one  greatest  man  of  the  earth ; 
even  now  he  remains,  through  his  perspicacity  and  his 
strength  of  will,  the  most  extraordinary. 

The  other  Bonaparte,  forming  a  kind  of  uneasy  con- 
science to  the  first,  was  devoured  by  anxiety,  agitated  by 
continual  suspicion,  a  slave  to  passions  which  gave  him  no 
rest,  distrustful,  fearing  every  rival  greatness,  even  that 
which  he  had  himself  created.  If  the  necessity  of  political 
institutions  was  made  plain  to  him,  he  was  struck  at  the  same 
moment  by  the  rights  which  they  must  confer  on  individuals, 
and  then,  gradually  becoming  afraid  of  his  own  handiwork, 
lie  could  not  resist  the  temptation  to  destroy  it  piecemeal. 
He  has  been  heard  to  say.  after  he  had  restored  titles  of  no- 

V     ' 

bility  and  given  inalienable  possessions  *  to  his  marshals  :  "  I 
have  made  these  people  independent ;  but  I  shall  know  how  to 

*  Majorats. 


338  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE  R&MUSAT. 

reach  them  and  prevent  them  from  being  ungrateful."  When 
seized  upon  by  this  spirit  of  distrust  of  other  men,  he  gave 
himself  up  to  it  entirely,  and  thought  only  of  how  to  create 
divisions  among  them.  He  weakened  family  ties,  and  ap- 
plied himself  to  promote  individual  rather  than  general  in- 
terests. Sole  center  of  an  immense  circle,  he  would  have 
liked  it  to  contain  as  many  radii  as  he  had  subjects,  that  they 
might  meet  nowhere  save  in  him.  This  suspicious  jealousy, 
which  incessantly  pursued  him,  fastened  like  a  canker  on  all 
his  undertakings,  and  prevented  him  from  establishing  on  a 
solid  foundation  any  of  the  schemes  which  his  prolific  imagi- 
nation was  continually  inventing. 

After  the  campaign  of  Austerlitz  he  was  so  inflated  with 
success,  and  with  the  worship  which  the  people,  half  dazzled 
and  half  subjugated,  paid  to  him,  that  his  despotism  became 
more  than  ever  intensified.  Every  citizen  felt  the  yoke  that  was 
laid  on  him  heavier ;  heads  were  bowed  almost  perforce  before 
his  glory,  but  it  was  discovered  afterward  that  he  had  taken 
means  to  prevent  their  being  lifted  again.  He  surrounded 
himself  with  new  splendor  in  order  to  put  a  greater  distance 
between  himself  and  other  men.  He  copied,  from  German 
customs  which  he  had  carefully  observed,  the  whole  etiquette 
of  courts,  which  he  made  a  daily  slavery,  and  no  one  was 
exempt  from  minute  observances  which  he  brought  to  the 
utmost  perfection. 

It  must  be  owned,  however,  that  immediately  after  a  cam- 
paign he  was  almost  obliged  to  take  measures  which  would 
silence  the  clamorous  pretensions  of  his  followers ;  and,  when 
he  had  put  these  down,  it  did  not  occur  to  him  that  he  ought 
to  treat  with  greater  consideration  the  other  classes  of  citi- 
zens, of  far  less  importance  in  his  eyes.  Military  men,  still 
flushed  with  victory,  would  assume  a  haughty  position  from 
which  it  was  difficult  to  bring  them  down.  I  have  kept  a 
letter  from  M.  de  Eemusat,  written  from  Schonbrunn,  which 
describes  very  exactly  the  inflation  of  the  generals,  and  the 
prudence  that  was  required  in  order  to  live  peaceably  with 


POSITION  AND   CHARACTER   OF  THE  EMPEROR.   339 

them.  "  The  military  profession,"  he  writes,  "  gives  to  a 
man's  character  a  certain  blunt  sincerity,  so  that  he  does  not 
try  to  hide  the  meanest  passions.  Our  heroes,  who  are  ac- 
customed to  open  war  with  their  enemies,  acquire  a  habit  of 
disguising  nothing,  and  see  a  battle-field  in  'any  opposition 
they  may  meet  with,  of  whatever  kind.  It  is  curious  to  hear 
them  speak  of  civilians,  and  indeed,  afterward,  to  hear  them 
discuss  each  other — each  depreciating  the  deeds  of  the  oth- 
ers, attributing  a  large  share  of  their  success  to  luck ;  black- 
ening reputations  which  we  outsiders  had  thought  firmly 
established ;  and,  in  their  behavior  to  us,  so  puffed  up  with 
their  newly  acquired  glory  that  one  needs  much  tact  and 
many  sacrifices  of  pride,  even  of  proper  pride,  to  procure 
toleration  from  them." 

The  Emperor  noticed  this  somewhat  belligerent  attitude 
of  the  officers  of  his  army.  He  cared  little  that  it  was  an- 
noying to  civilians,  but  he  would  not  have  it  reach  a  point 
which  might  be  inconvenient  to  himself.  Therefore,  while 
still  at  Munich,  he  thought  proper  to  rebuke  the  arrogance 
of  his  marshals,  and  on  this  occasion  self-interest  induced  him 
to  use  the  language  of  reason.  "  Kecollect,"  he  said,  "  that 
you  are  to  be  soldiers  only  when  with  the  army.  The  title 
of  marshal  is  merely  a  civil  distinction,  which  gives  you  the 
honorable  rank  at  my  Court  that  is  jour  due,  but  it  carries 
with  it  no  authority.  On  the  battle-field  you  are  generals ; 
at  Court  be  merely  great  nobles,  belonging  to  the  State  by 
the  civil  position  I  created  for  you  when  I  bestowed  on  you 
the  title  which  you  bear." 

This  warning  would  have  produced  a  greater  effect  had 
the  Emperor  ended  it  with  such  words  as  these :  "In  camp 
or  in  Court,  recollect  that  your  first  duty  everywhere  is  to 
be  good  citizens."  He  should  have  held  similar  language  to 
all  classes,  to  whom  he  was  bound  to  be  a  protector  as  well 
as  a  master ;  he  should  have  spoken  the  same  words  to  all 
Frenchmen,  and  so  have  united  them  in  a  new  equality,  not 
adverse  to  distinctions  won  by  valor.  But  Bonaparte,  as  we 


340  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

have  seen,  was  always  in  dread  of  natural  and  generous  ties, 
and  the  iron  chain  of  despotism  is  the  only  bond  he  em- 
ployed, because  it  binds  each  man,  as  it  were,  separately, 
leaving  him  no  commerce  with  his  fellows. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

(1806.) 

The  Death  of  Pitt— Parliamentary  Debates  in  England— Public  Works— Industrial 
Exhibition — New  Etiquette — Performances  at  the  Opera  House  and  at  the 
Come'die  Franchise — Monotony  of  the  Court — Opinions  of  the  Empress — Mine. 
Louis  Bonaparte — Mme.  Murat — The  Bourbons — New  Ladies-in- Waiting — M. 
Mole— Mme.  d'Houdetot— Mme.  de  Barante. 

WHEN  the  Emperor  arrived  in  Paris,  at  the  end  of  Janu- 
ary, 1806,  the*  death  of  Pitt,  at  the  age  of  forty-seven,  had 
just  occurred  in  England.  His  loss  was  deeply  felt  by  the 
English,  and  a  truly  national  regret  did  honor  to  his  mem- 
ory. Parliament,  which  had  just  opened,  voted  a  large  sum 
to  defray  his  debts,  for  he  died  leaving  no  fortune,  and  he 
was  splendidly  buried  in  Westminster  Abbey.  When  the 
new  Ministry  was  formed,  Mr.  Fox,  his  opponent,  was  made 
Foreign  Secretary.  The  Emperor  looked  upon  the  death  of 
Pitt  as  a  fortunate  event  for  him,  but  he  soon  perceived  that 
English  policy  had  not  changed,  and  that  the  British  Govern- 
ment would  not  relax  its  endeavors  to  excite  enmity  against 
him  among  the  continental  Powers.* 

*  The  debates  of  the  English  Parliament  and  English  policy  itself  were  at 
that  time  so  little  known  in  France  that  the  reader  must  not  be  surprised  if  the 
consequences  of  the  death  of  Pitt  are  hardly  appreciated  in  these  Memoirs. 
When  Fox  came  into  office,  he  took  a  step  which  led  to  overtures  of  peace.  A 
secret  negotiation  was  carried  on  by  Lord  Yarmouth,  and  afterward  by  Lord 
Lauderdale,  and  until  the  middle  of  summer  there  was  a  chance  of  mutual  un- 
derstanding. But  Fox  was  in  failing  health,  and  he  died  in  September.  It  is 
true,  moreover,  that,  although  a  partisan  of  peace,  he  did  not  look  upon  a  war 
with  Napoleon  as  he  had  looked  upon  a  war  with  the  French  Revolution.  It 
was  no  longer  the  liberty  of  France  that  was  in  question,  but  the  independence 
of  Europe. — P.  R. 


342        MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

During  the  month  of  January,  1806,  the  debates  in  the 
English  Parliament  had  been  very  warm.  The  Opposition, 
led  by  Mr.  Fox,  asked  the  Government  for  explanations  as 
to  the  carrying  out  of  the  late  war ;  it  asserted  that  the  Em- 
peror of  Austria  had  not  been  faithfully  assisted,  and  that  he 
had  been  left  to  the  mercy  of  the  conqueror.  The  Ministers 
then  laid  on  the  table  the  text  of  the  conditions  of  the  treaty 
between  the  various  Powers  at  the  beginning  of  the  cam- 
paign. This  treaty  proved  that  subsidies  had  been  granted 
to  the  coalition  which  had  undertaken  to  drive  the  Emperor 
from  Hanover,  Germany,  and  Italy,  to  replace  the  King  of 
Sardinia  on  the  throne  of  Piedmont,  and  to  secure  the  inde- 
pendence of  Holland  and  Sweden.  The  rapid  victories  of 
our  troops  had  upset  these  plans.  The  Emperor  of  Austria 
was  blamed  for  having  begun  the  campaign  too  precipitately, 
without  waiting  for  the  arrival  of  the  Russians ;  and  the 
King  of  Prussia,  whose  neutrality  had  been  the  principal 
cause  of  the  failure  of  the  coalition,  was  especially  blamed. 
The  Czar's  anger  was  roused,  and  he  might  have  been  tempt- 
ed to  punish  this  fatal  inaction,  had  not  the  lovely  and  fasci- 
nating Queen  of  Prussia  interceded  between  the  two  sov- 
ereigns. A  rumor  then  arose  in  Europe  that  her  beauty  had 
disarmed  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  and  that  to  it  he  had  sacri- 
ficed his  just  displeasure.  Napoleon,  who  had  subdued  the 
King  of  Prussia  by  the  fear  of  his  arms,  thought  it  well  to 
reward  him  for  his  neutrality  by  handing  over  Hanover  to 
him  until  the  very  uncertain  epoch  of  general  peace.  On 
his  side,  the  King  ceded  Anspach  to  Bavaria,  and  abandoned 
in  favor  of  France  his  claims  to  the  duchies  of  Berg  and  of 
Cleves,  which  were  bestowed  shortly  afterward  on  Prince 
Joachim,  otherwise  Murat. 

The  report  laid  before  the  English  Parliament  on  the 
treaty  of  which  I  speak  was  published  in  our  newspapers,  and 
accompanied,  as  may  be  imagined,  by  remarks  hostile  to  the  con- 
tinental Powers.  The  weakness  of  those  kings  who  place  them- 
selves at  the  mercy  of  the  shopkeepers  of  Europe  was  deplored. 


THE  ORDER  OF  ST.   GEORGE.  343 

"  If  England,"  so  ran  the  comment,  "  should  succeed  in 
forming  a  fourth  coalition,  Austria,  who  lost  Belgium  by  the 
first,  Italy  and  the  left  bank  of  the  Ehine  by  the  second, 
Tyrol,  Swabia,  and  the  Venetian  States  by  the  third,  would 
by  the  fourth  lose  her  own  crown. 

"  The  influence  of  the  French  Empire  on  the  Continent 
will  secure  the  well-being  of  Europe,  for  with  it  will  have 
begun  the  age  of  civilization,  of  science,  of  light,  and  of  law. 
The  Emperor  of  Kussia  has  imprudently  embarked,  like  a 
young  man,  in  a  dangerous  policy.  As  to  Austria,  we  must 
forget  her  faults,  since  she  has  suffered  for  them.  However, 
it  is  right  to  say  that  if  the  treaty  now  made  public  in  Eng- 
land had  been  known,  perhaps  Austria  might  not  have  ob- 
tained the  terms  which  have  been  granted  to  her ;  and  we 
may  remark,  in  passing,  that  Count  de  Stadion,  who  con- 
cluded this  treaty  of  subsidies,  is  still  at  the  head  of  affairs 
under  the  Emperor  Francis." 

These  remarks,  which  were  the  expression  of  an  ill-con- 
cealed irritation,  began  -to  cause  some  little  uneasiness  in  the 
early  part  of  February,  and  to  make  attentive  observers  fear 
that  peace  would  not  be  of  long  duration. 

No  treaty  had  been  concluded  with  the  Czar.  Under 
pretext  that  he  had  only  acted  as  auxiliary  to  the  Austrians, 
he  refused  to  be  included  in  the  negotiations ;  and  I  have 
heard  it  said  that  the  Emperor,  impressed  by  this  conduct, 
looked  upon  him,  from  that  time  forth,  as  the  veritable  an- 
tagonist who  would  dispute  with  him  the  empire  of  the 
world.  He  always  endeavored  to  depreciate  him  as  much  as 
possible. 

There  is  an  order  *  in  Kussia  which  can  only  be  worn  by 
a  general  whose  services  have  on  some  great  occasion  been 
useful  to  the  empire.  When  Alexander  returned  to  his  cap- 
ital, the  knights  of  this  order  came  to  offer  him  the  decora- 
tion. The  Emperor  declined  it,  replying  that  he  had  not 
held  the  chief  command  during  the  campaign,  and  therefore 

*  The  order  of  St.  George. 


344:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E&MUSAT. 

had  not  merited  the  honor,  as  he  had  only  imitated  the  in- 
trepidity of  his  brave  soldiers  to  the  best  of  his  ability. 

While  our  journals  praised  his  modesty,  they  added: 
"  The  Czar  deserved  this  decoration  if,  in  order  to  wear  it, 
it  is  sufficient  to  be  in  command  without  being  victorious. 
It  is  well  known  that  it  was  not  the  Emperor  Francis  who 
decided  on  joining  battle  at  Austerlitz,  still  less  did  he  direct 
operations.  Certainly,  by  accepting  the  decoration,  Alexan- 
der would  have  taken  on  himself  the  oversights  of  his  gen- 
erals ;  but  that  would  have  been  better  than  to  attribute  the 
defeat  of  the  Russians  to  a  small  number  of  Austrians,  who 
fought  with  courage.  They  did  all  that  could  have  been 
expected  of  them  by  their  allies." 

It  was  on  the  2d  of  February  that  this  article  appeared  in 
our  public  "prints ;  on  the  preceding  day  they  had  published 
the  proclamation  to  the  Army  of  Italy,  which  announced  the 
invasion  of  the  kingdom  of  Naples.  Joseph  Bonaparte,  sec- 
onded by  Marshal  Massena,  was  very  shortly  to  occupy  the 
capital;  Prince  Eugene  was  taking  possession  of  Venice. 
Thus  the  whole  of  Italy  was  becoming  dependent  on  the 
French  Empire.  On  another  side,  northern  Germany  was 
subject  to  us,  the  kings  whom  we  had  set  up  bound  them- 
selves to  our  interests,  and  we  were  shortly  to  witness  an- 
other marriage,  which  would  be  likely  to  further  the  projects 
in  which  the  Emperor  was  secretly  indulging. 

On  the  occasion  of  his  journey  from  Munich,  he  had  made 
a  few  hours'  stay  at  Augsburg.  While  there,  the  former 
Elector  of  Treves,  uncle  to  the  King  of  Saxony,  had  present- 
to  him  the  young  Hereditary  Prince  of  Baden,  who,  con- 
fused and  almost  trembling  in  the  presence  of  Napoleon, 
had  humbly  implored  the  honor  of  alliance  with  him  by  a 
marriage  with  some  member  of  his  family.  The  Emperor 
accepted  this  respectful  request,  and  promised  to  bear  it  in 
mind  on  his  return  to  his  own  states.* 

*  This  young  Prince  had  formerly  been  betrothed  to  Princess  Augusta  of 
Bavaria,  recently  married  to  the  Viceroy  of  Italy.— P.  B. 


PUBLIC  WORKS.  345 

Finally,  he  had  just  dispatched  his  brother  Louis  on  an 
expedition  to  Holland,  in  order  to  establish  some  acquain- 
tanceship between  the  Prince  and  a  country  which  was  soon 
to  receive  the  Imperial  command  to  erect  a  throne  for  Louis 
on  the  wreck  of  the  republic. 

Such  was  the  political  situation  of  the  Emperor.  Such  a 
position  would  surely  have  satisfied  any  views  less  ambitious 
than  his  own,  nor  can  it  be  denied  that  he  had  made  full 
use  of  the  eighteenth  month  of  his  reign,  now  just  expired. 

In  France,  party  spirit  seemed  absolutely  to  have  died 
out.  All  bent  under  the  yoke ;  no  class  could  be  indifferent 
to  so  much  glory ;  and  the  Emperor  endeavored  to  increase 
the  prestige  which  surrounded  him  still  further  by  numerous 
public  works,  simultaneously  undertaken.  As  soon  as  it  be- 
came possible  for  him  to  divert  his  attention  for  a  moment 
from  foreign  affairs,  he  devoted  it  to  the  improvement  of  the 
finances  of  the  country,  which  had  suffered  during  his  ab- 
sence. M.  Barbe-Marbois,  Minister  of  the  Treasury,*  hav- 
ing incurred  his  displeasure,  was  replaced  by  M.  Mollien, 
who  was  a  skillful  financier.  The  Emperor  was  ably  sec- 
onded by  his  Minister  of  Finance,  Gaudin,  whose  perfect 
integrity  and  sound  knowledge  sustained  credit  and  im- 
proved the  system  of  taxation.  Indirect  taxes  were  ven- 
tured on  to  a  greater  extent  than  before;  luxury,  which 
would  render  these  taxes  more  productive,  was  encouraged ; 
and  the  heavy  contributions  which  the  Emperor  had  every- 
where levied  upon  his  conquered  enemies  afforded  him  the 
means,  without  burdening  his  people,  of  keeping  up  the 
strength  of  his  army,  and  undertaking  all  the  improvements 
which  were  begun  throughout  France,  as  if  by  magic,  at  his 
command. 

Eoads  over  Mont  Cenis  and  the  Simplon  were  actively 
pushed  on ;  bridges  were  built,  roadways  repaired ;  a  town 
was  founded  in  Yendee ;  canals  were  dug  at  Ourcq  and  at 

*  M.  de  Marbois,  who  was  very  unjustly  accused  of  misconduct  in  some  • 
money  transaction,  was  exiled  on  the  return  of  Bonaparte  from  this  campaign. 


346  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

Saint  Quentin ;  telegraphs  (i.  e.,  signals)  were  established  to 
accelerate  correspondence ;  Saint  Denis  was  about  to  be  re- 
paired ;  the  Yendome  column  and  the  triumphal  arch  at  the 
Carrousel  were  commenced.  A  plan  for  embanking  the 
Seine  with  new  quays,  and  for  embellishing  the  whole  neigh- 
borhood lying  between  the  Tuileries  and  the  Boulevards,  was 
adopted,  and  the  work  of  demolition  had  already  made  some 
progress.  The  Hue  de  Rivoli  was  planned,  the  colon- 
nade of  the  Louvre  nearly  completed;  Lemot,  the  sculp- 
tor, was  intrusted  with  the  decoration  of  the  pediment.  "We 
could  observe  the  gradual  rise  of  the  Pont  des  Arts,  and  the 
commencement  of  the  bridge  near  the  Jardin  des  Plantes, 
which  was  to  bear  the  name  of  Austerlitz.  The  conserva- 
tories in  these  gardens  had  been  enriched  with  spoils  from 
those  of  Schonbrunn ;  scientific  men  were  encouraged  in  the 
pursuit  of  fresh  discoveries ;  painters  received  orders  for 
pictures  to  commemorate  our  victories;  the  Academy  of 
Music  was  encouraged ;  the  first  musical  artists  in  Italy  came 
to  France  to  direct  our  vocal  music ;  literary  men  received 
pensions,  and  large  grants  were  made  to  actors;  military 
schools  were  founded  at  Fontainebleau  and  at  Saint  Cyr; 
and  the  Emperor  himself  inspected  the  public  schools  of 
Paris.  Finally,  in  order  that  the  industry  of  the  nation 
might  be  encouraged  in  every  branch  at  once,  he  conceived 
the  idea  of  an  exhibition,  to  be  held  in  the  spring,  and  in 
commemoration  of  the  campaign,  in  which  every  product  of 
industry,  of  whatever  kind,  should  be  represented.* 

M.  de  Champagny,  the  Minister  of  the  Interior,  wrote  a 
circular  letter  to  all  the  prefects,  directing  them  to  inform 
the  departments  over  which  they  presided  that,  on  the  1st  of 
May,  there  would  be  exhibited  on  the  Place  des  Invalides, 
under  tents  erected  for  the  occasion,  everything  deserving  of 
notice  in  articles  of  use  and  of  luxury.  Trade  was  in  this 
manner  awakened  from  the  torpor  in  which  it  had  been 

*An  exhibition  of  industrial  products  had  already  taken  place  in  1802; 
this,  therefore,  was  the  second,  not  the  first  exhibition  of  the  kind.— P.  B. 


THE  CROSS  OF  ST.  HUBERT.  347 

plunged  by  the  war.  The  Emperor  ordered  the  splendor 
and  the  cost  of  his  Court  to  be  increased.  He  gave  his  ap- 
proval to  the  growing  elegance  of  the  women's  dress,  to  the 
sumptuous  decoration  of  his  own  palaces,  and  to  that  of  the 
houses  of  his  sisters  and  his  great  nobles.  The  French  na- 
tion, which  is  naturally  prone  to  vanity  and  extravagance, 
gave  itself  up  to  the  comforts  and  luxuries  of  life ;  and  as 
for  us,  whose  fortunes  were  but  annuities  depending  not  only 
on  the  life  but  on  the  caprice  of  our  master,  with  an  utter 
disregard  of  prudence,  influenced  by  the  example  of  others 
and  by  the  fear  of  displeasing  him,  we  were  ruled  by  the 
will  of  Bonaparte  alone  in  the  use  to  which  we  put  the 
greater  or  less  sums  he  distributed  to  us,  and  which  he  gave 
with  the  intention  of  subduing  rather  than  of  enriching  us. 

I  say  we,  and  yet  at  this  time  neither  M.  de  Remusat  nor 
I  had  any  share  in  his  gifts.  The  cross  of  Saint  Hubert  had 
been  given  to  my  husband  as  a  recompense  for  his  recent 
journey,  but  he  never  stood  in  the  full  light  of  Imperial 
favor.  As  for  myself,  I  led  an  unobtrusive  life  in  the  midst 
of  the  Court,  whose  numbers  were  greatly  augmented.  To 
speak  frankly,  although  I  had  taken  pleasure  in  the  promi- 
nence assigned  to  me  by  my  masters  when  I  first  entered 
their  service,  the  little  experience  I  had  acquired  warned  me 
not  to  endeavor  to  regain  any  position  of  importance,  now 
that  the  interior  of  the  palace  was  no  longer  the  same.  I 
shall  devote  the  following  chapter  to  the  details  of  Court 
life,  as  it  was  now  regulated,  but  I  will  return  for  the  present 
to  my  narrative  of  events.* 

Immediately  on  the  Emperor's  return  to  his  capital,  he 
was  congratulated  by  the  respective  bodies  of  the  State. 

During  his  stay  at  Munich  he  had  witnessed  a  German 
ceremonial,  in  which  the  King  and  Queen  of  Bavaria,  having 
taken  their  places  on  the  throne,  received  all  the  persons  be- 

*  Our  newspapers  gave  us  the  proclamation  of  Francis  on  his  return  to 
Vienna ;  it  was  fatherly  and  touching,  contrasting  with  those  dictated  by  our 
own  sovereign. 


348  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

longing  to  their  Court,  who  passed  before  them  in  succession, 
each  making  a  low  salutation.  He  desired  to  establish  a  simi- 
lar custom  in  France,  and  we  received  orders  to  prepare  for 
this  new  "  etiquette." 

The  fact  is  that,  at  that  time,  everything  had  to  be  con- 
structed afresh.  Revolutionary  liberty  had  suppressed  all 
the  rules  of  politeness.  People  no  longer  knew  how  to 
salute  each  other  when  they  met,  and  all  we  court  ladies 
suddenly  discovered  that  the  art  of  making  a  courtesy  had 
been  omitted  in  our  education.  Despreaux,  who  had  been 
dancing-master  to  the  last  Queen,  was  thereupon  summoned 
to  give  us  lessons.  He  taught  us  how  to  walk  and  how  to 
bow ;  and  thus  a  little  boundary-line,  trifling  enough  in  itself, 
but  which  acquired  some  importance  from  its  motive,  was 
drawn  between  the  ladies  of  the  Imperial  Court  and  those 
belonging  to  other  circles.  We  took  with  us  into  society 
ceremonious  manners,  which  distinguished  us  everywhere; 
for  a  spirit  of  opposition  caused  those  women  who  kept  aloof 
from  the  new  Court  to  retain  the  free  and  rather  abrupt 
manners  which  the  absence  of  the  habits  of  society  had  given 
them.  In  France,  opinions  make  themselves  felt  everywhere ; 
they  now  showed  themselves  in  the  different  way  in  which 
a  lady-in-waiting  and  a  lady  from  the  Faubourg  Saint  Germain 
would  enter  a  drawing-room.  But,  putting  motives  aside,  it 
must  be  owned  that  the  advantage  was  ours.  This  was  evi- 
dent after  the  return  of  the  King :  those  ladies  who  had  a 
real  right  to  be  about  him,  either  from  the  habit  of  freedom 
of  manner  which  they  had  acquired,  or  from  the  relief  they 
affected  to  feel  at  finding  themselves  on  what  great  people 
call  their  own  ground,  introduced  at  the  Tuileries  a  bold 
manner  and  loud  tones  of  voice,  which  contrasted  sharply 
with  the  quiet  and  graceful  behavior  that  Bonaparte's  punc- 
tilious etiquette  had  made  habitual  to  us. 

On  an  appointed  day,  therefore,  the  Emperor  placed 
himself  on  his  throne,  having  the  Empress  on  his  left,  the 
Princesses  and  the  Lady  of  Honor  seated  on  court  tabourets, 


PERFORMANCES  AT  THE  OPERA  HOUSE.         349 

and  the  grand  officers  standing  on  either  side.  The  ladies- 
in-waiting,  the  wives  of  the  marshals,  of  the  great  officials, 
and  of  the  ministers,  all  in  full  court  dress,  then  came  in 
slow  procession  to  the  foot  of  the  throne,  where  they  courte- 
sied  in  silence.  They  were  followed  by  the  gentlemen. 

The  ceremony  was  very  long.  At  first  the  Emperor  was 
delighted.  He  took  pleasure  in  etiquette,  especially  when 
invented  by  himself;  but  he  ended  by  being  mortally  wea- 
ried. Toward  the  end,  every  one  was  hurried  past ;  there 
was  some  difficulty  in  inducing  him  to  remain  on  the  throne 
until  the  close,  and  he  was  almost  angry  with  us  for  our 
share  in  a  ceremonial  which  he  himself  had  imposed  on  us, 
in  the  exercise  of  his  own  will. 

A  few  nights  afterward  he  went  to  the  Opera,  and  was 
received  with  applause  by  an  immense  crowd.  A  piece  by 
Esmenard,  author  of  the  "  Poeme  de  la  Navigation,"  was 
given. 

The  scenery  at  the  Opera  represented  the  Pont  JSTeuf. 
Persons  of  all  nationalities  were  rejoicing  together,  and  sing- 
ing verses  in  honor  of  the  conqueror.  The  pit  joined  in  the 
choruses ;  branches  of  laurel  were  distributed  throughout  the 
house,  and  waved  aloft  with  cries  of  "  Yive  PEmpereur ! " 
He  was  touched,  as  well  he  might  be.  It  was,  perhaps,  the 
very  last  time  that  public  enthusiasm  for  him  was  spontaneous. 

Shortly  afterward  the  Emperor  received  a  similar  ovation 
at  the  Comedie  Francaise,  but  an  unforeseen  circumstance 
threw  a  slight  shadow  over  the  evening.  Talma  was  acting 
the  part  of  Abner  in  the  tragedy  of  "  Athalie."  During  the 
performance  Bonaparte  received  a  messenger  bringing  the 
news  of  the  entry  of  the  French  troops  into  Naples.  He 
immediately  dispatched  an  aide-de-camp  to  Talma,  with 
orders  to  interrupt  the  play,  and  to  announce  the  news  from 
the  foot-lights.  Talma  obeyed,  and  read  the  bulletin  aloud. 
The  audience  applauded,  but  I  remember  thinking  that  the 
applause  was  not  so  spontaneous  as  that  we  had  heard  at  the 
Opera. 


350  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

On  the  following  day  our  newspapers  announced  the  fall 
of  her  whom  they  designated  as  the  modern  Athalie ;  *  and 
the  vanquished  Queen  was  grossly  insulted,  with  total  disre- 
gard of  the  social  propriety  that  generally  enforces  respect 
toward  misfortune. 

It  was  remarked  shortly  afterward  that,  on  the  opening 
of  the  Legislative  Assemblies,  M.  de  Fontanes  displayed 
great  tact,  when  he  praised  Bonaparte,  in  avoiding  any  in- 
sult to  the  fallen  sovereigns  whom  he  had  dethroned.  He 
dwelt  chiefly,  in  his  eulogium,  on  the  moderation  which  had 
promoted  peace,  and  on  the  restoration  of  the  tombs  in  St. 
Denis.  M.  de  Fontanes's  speeches  during  this  reign  are,  on 
the  whole,  distinguished  by  propriety  and  good  taste. 

After  having  thus  shown  himself  to  the  public  and  ex- 
hausted every  form  of  adulation,  the  Emperor  resumed  his 
life  of  hard  work  at  the  Tuileries,  and  we  our  life  of  eti- 
quette, which  was  regulated  with  extreme  precision.  He 
began  from  this  period  to  surround  himself  with  so  much 
ceremonial  that  none  of  us  thenceforth  could  be  said  to  have 
any  familiarity  with  him.  In  proportion  as  the  Court  be- 
came more  numerous,  it  assumed  a  greater  appearance  of 
monotony,  each  one  doing  his  own  task  by  clockwork ;  but 
no  one  thought  of  emancipating  himself  from  the  one  groove 
of  thought  belonging  to  a  narrow  circle  of  small  duties.  A 
daily  growing  despotism,  the  fear  we  all  felt  of  it — a  fear 
which  consisted  simply  in  our  dread  of  receiving  a  rebuke 
for  the  smallest  fault— and  the  silence  we  observed  on  every 
subject,  placed  the  various  inhabitants  of  the  Tuileries  on 
the  same  level.  It  was  useless  to  have  either  opinions  or 
talents,  for  there  was  never  any  possibility  of  experiencing  a 
feeling  of  any  kind,  nor  of  exchanging  an  idea. 

The  Emperor,  feeling  secure  of  France,  gave  himself  up 

to  his  grand  projects,  and  kept  his  eyes  fixed  on  Europe. 

His  policy  was  no  longer  directed  to  securing  his  power  over 

the  opinions  of  his  fellow  citizens.     In  like  manner,  he  dis- 

*  The  Queen  of  Naples. 


MONOTONY  OF  THE  COURT.  351 

darned  the  little  successes  of  private  life,  which  we  have 
seen  him  at  an  earlier  period  anxious  to  obtain ;  and  I  may 
say  that  he  looked  upon  his  Court  with  the  indifference 
which  a  complete  conquest  inspires,  when  compared  with 
one  as  yet  unattained.  He  was  always  anxious  to  impose  a 
yoke  on  every  one,  and  to  succeed  in  this  he  neglected  no 
means  to  his  end ;  but,  from  the  moment  he  perceived  his 
power  to  be  established,  he  took  no  pains  to  make  himself 
agreeable. 

The  dependence  and  constraint  in  which  he  held  the 
Court  had  at  least  this  one  advantage  :  anything  resembling 
intrigue  was  almost  unknown.  As  each  individual  was  firm- 
ly convinced  that  everything  depended  on  the  sole  will  of 
the  master,  no  one  attempted  to  follow  a  different  path  from 
that  traced  out  by  him ;  and  in  our  dealings  with  each  other 
there  was  a  feeling  of  security. 

His  wife  was  almost  in  the  same  position  of  dependence 
as  others.  In  proportion  as  Bonaparte's  affairs  increased  in 
magnitude,  she  became  a  stranger  to  them.  European  poli- 
tics, the  destiny  of  the  world,  mattered  little  to  her ;  her 
thoughts  did  not  reach  to  heights  which  could  have  no  influ- 
ence on  her  own  fate.  At  this  period  she  was  tranquil  as  to 
her  own  lot,  and  happy  in  that  of  her  son ;  and  she  lived  a 
life  of  peaceful  indifference,  behaving  to  all  with  equal  gra- 
ciousness,  showing  little  or  no  special  favor  to  any  one,  but  a 
general  good  will.  She  neither  sought  for  amusement  nor 
feared  ennui  •  she  was  always  gentle  and  serene,  and,  in  fact, 
was  indifferent  to  nearly  all  things.  Her  love  for  her  hus- 
band had  greatly  declined,  and  she  no  longer  suffered  from 
the  jealousy  which  had  in  former  years  so  much  disturbed 
her.  Every  day  she  judged  him  with  greater  clearness,  and, 
being  convinced  that  her  greatest  source  of  influence  over 
him  consisted  in  the  sense  of  restfulness  imparted  to  him  by 
the  evenness  of  her  temper,  she  took  great  pains  to  avoid 
disturbing  him.  I  have  said  long  ago  that  such  a  man  as  he 
had  neither  time  nor  inclination  for  much  display  of  affec- 
27 


352  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

tion,  and  the  Empress  at  this  period  forgave  him  all  the 
fancies  which  sometimes  take  the  place  of  love  in  a  man's 
life;  nay,  more,  she  became  his  confidante  in  these  little 
affairs. 

On  his  return  from  Austerlitz,  he  again  met  Mme.  de 

X ,  but  seemed  to  take  no  notice  of  her.  The  Empress 

treated  her  precisely  as  she  treated  others.  It  has  been  said 
that  Bonaparte  occasionally  returned  to  his  former  fancy  for 
this  lady ;  but,  if  so,  it  was  so  temporarily  that  the  Court 
barely  perceived  the  fact,  and,  as  it  gave  rise  to  no  new  inci- 
dent, it  awakened  no  interest.  The  Emperor,  who  was  con- 
vinced that  the  influence  of  women  had  harmed  the  kings  of 
France,  was  irrevocably  resolved  that  they  should  never  be 
more  than  an  ornament  to  his  Court,  and  he  kept  his  resolu- 
tion. He  had  persuaded  himself,  I  know  not  how,  that  in 
France  women  are  cleverer  than  men,  or  at  any  rate  he  often 
said  so,  and  that  the  education  they  receive  develops  a  certain 
kind  of  ability,  against  which  one  must  be  on  one's  guard. 
He  felt,  therefore,  a  slight  fear  of  them,  and  kept  them  at  a 
distance  on  this  account.  He  exhibited  a  dislike  of  certain 
women's  temper  which  amounted  to  weakness. 

He  banished  Mme.  de  Stael,  of  whom  he  was  genuinely 
afraid,  and  shortly  afterward  Mme.  de  Balbi,  who  had  ven- 
tured on  some  jesting  remarks  concerning  himself.  She  had 
indiscreetly  made  these  observations  in  the  hearing  of  'a 
person  whom  I  will  not  name,  and  who  repeated  all  he  had 
heard.  This  individual  was  a  gentleman  and  a  Chamberlain. 
I  mention  the  fact  in  order  to  prove  that  the  Emperor  found 
persons  in  every  class  who  were  willing  to  serve  him  in  his 
own  way. 

"We  began  to  perceive,  during  the  winter  of  this  year,  how 
unhappy  Mme.  Louis  was  in  her  home  life.  Her  husband's 
tyranny  was  exercised  in  every  particular;  his  character, 
quite  as  despotic  as  his  brother's,  made  itself  felt  throughout 
his  household.  Until  now  his  wife  had  courageously  hidden 
the  excess  to  which  he  carried  his  tyranny ;  but  a  circum- 


LOUIS  BONAPARTE  IN  BAD  HEALTH.  353 

stance  occurred  which  obliged  her  to  confide  some  of  her 
troubles  to  her  mother. 

The  health  of  Louis  Bonaparte  was  very  bad.  Since  his 
return  from  Egypt  he  had  suffered  from  frequent  attacks 
of  a  malady  which  had  so  weakened  his  legs  and  his  hands 
that  he  walked  with  difficulty,  and  was  stiff  in  every  joint. 
Every  remedy  known  to  medicine  was  tried  in  vain.  Cor- 
visart,  who  was  medical  attendant  to  the  whole  family,  ad- 
vised him  to  try,  as  a  last  resource,  a  disgusting  remedy. 
He  imagined  that  a  violent  eruption  on  the  skin  would  per- 
haps draw  out  the  poison  which  had  defied  other  treatment. 
It  was  therefore  decided  that  on  the  state  bed  of  Louis,  un- 
der its  embroidered  canopy,  should  be  spread  the  hospital 
sheets  of  some  patient  suffering  from  the  itch ;  and  his  Im- 
perial Highness  placed  himself  between  them,  and  even  put 
on  the  sick  man's  night-shirt.  Louis,  who  wished  to  hide 
this  experiment  from  everybody,  insisted  that  nothing  should 
be  changed  in  the  habits  of  his  wife.  They  usually  slept  in 
the  same  room,  though  not  in  the  same  bed  ;  he  had  always 
obliged  her  to  pass  the  night  near  him  on  a  small  bed  placed 
under  the  same  canopy.  He  imperatively  commanded  that 
she  should  continue  to  occupy  this  bed,  adding,  in  a  spirit  of 
strange  jealousy,  that  no  husband  should  ever  omit  to  take 
precautions  against  the  natural  inconstancy  of  women.  Mme. 
Louis,  notwithstanding  her  disgust,  submitted  in  silence  to 
this  gross  abuse  of  conjugal  authority. 

Meanwhile,  Corvisart,  who  was  in  attendance  on  her,  and 
who  remarked  a  change  in  her  appearance,  questioned  her 
respecting  the  details  of  her  life,  and  obtained  from  her  an 
admission  of  her  husband's  strange  fancy.  He  thought  it 
his  duty  to  inform  the  Empress,  and  did  not  conceal  from 
her  that,  in  his  opinion,  the  atmosphere  of  Louis's  bedroom 
was  very  unwholesome  for  his  wife. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  warned  her  daughter,  who  replied  that 
she  had  thought  as  much ;  but,  nevertheless,  she  earnestly 
entreated  her  mother  not  to  interfere  between  her  husband 


354:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

and  herself.  Then,  no  longer  able  to  restrain  herself,  she 
entered  into  particulars  which  showed  how  grinding  was  the 
tyranny  from  which  she  suffered,  and  how  admirable  the  si- 
lence she  had  hitherto  kept.  Mine.  Bonaparte  appealed  to 
the  Emperor,  who  was  attached  to  his  stepdaughter,  and  he 
expressed  his  displeasure  to  his  brother.  Louis  coldly  re- 
plied that,  if  his  private  affairs  were  interfered  with,  he 
should  leave  France ;  and  the  Emperor,  who  could  not  toler- 
ate any  open  scandal  in  the  family,  and  who  was  perhaps, 
like  the  others,  daunted  by  Louis's  strange  and  obstinate 
temper,  advised  Mme.  Louis  to  have  patience.  Happily  for 
her,  her  husband  soon  gave  up  the  disgusting  remedy  in 
question,  but  he  owed  her  a  deep  grudge  for  not  having  kept 
his  secret. 

Had  her  daughter  been  happy,  there  was  nothing  at  this 
time  to  disturb  the  tranquillity  of  the  Empress.  The  Bona- 
parte family,  full  of  their  own  affairs,  no  longer  interfered 
with  her ;  Joseph  was  absent  and  about  to  ascend  the  throne 
of  Naples ;  Lucien  was  exiled  for  ever  from  France ;  the 
youthful  Jerome  was  cruising  along  our  coasts  ;  Mme.  Bac- 
ciochi  was  reigning  at  Piombino ;  and  the  Princess  Borghese, 
alternating  between  physic  and  dissipation,  meddled  with 
nobody.  Mme.  Murat  only  might  have  caused  annoyance  to 
her  sister-in-law,  but  she  was  engaged  in  promoting  her  hus- 
band's interests,  to  which  the  Empress  made  no  opposition  ; 
for  she  would  have  rejoiced  greatly  at  Murat's  obtaining  a 
principality  which  would  have  removed  him  from  Paris. 

Mme.  Murat  used  her  utmost  efforts,  and  was  even  im- 
portunate with  the  Emperor,  in  order  to  attain  her  ends. 
She  connived  at  his  gallantries,  lent  him  her  house  on  occa- 
sions when  it  was  convenient  to  him  to  use  it,  and  tried  to 
divert  him  by  fetes,  and  to  please  him  by  a  display  of  luxury 
according  to  his  taste.  She  interested  herself  in  every  detail 
of  the  etiquette  that  he  wished  to  introduce,  and  assumed 
airs  of  dignity,  somewhat  stilted  perhaps,  which  induced  him 
to  declare  that  -his  sister  was  in  every  respect  fitted  to  be  a 


MME.  MURAT.  355 

queen.  She  neglected  no  means  of  success,  paid  attention 
to  Maret,  who  had  gradually  gained  the  sort  of  influence 
that  is  acquired  by  assiduity,  and  flattered  Fouche  into  a 
zealous  attachment  to  her  interests.  The  understanding  be- 
tween Mme.  Murat  and  these  two  personages,  who  were  both 
ill-disposed  toward  M.  de  Talleyrand,  increased  the  dislike  of 
the  latter  to  Murat ;  and,  as  at  this  period  he  was  in  high 
favor,  he  often  thwarted  Mme.  Murat's  plans.  Murat  used 
to  say,  in  the  southern  accent  he  never  lost,  "  "Would  not 
Moussu  de  Talleyrand  like  me  to  be  broken  on  the  wheel ! " 

Murat,  relying  on  his  wife  to  further  his  interests,  con- 
tented himself  with  giving  no  cause  of  offense  to  the  Em- 
peror, behaved  toward  him  with  entire  submission,  and  bore 
his  alternations  of  temper  without  complaint.  Brave  to 
excess  on  the  battle-field,  he  had  not,  it  was  said,  any  great 
military  talent ;  and  when  with  the  army  he  asked  for  no- 
thing but  the  post  of  danger.  He  was  not  wanting  in  quick- 
ness, his  manners  were  obliging ;  his  attitudes  and  his  dress 
were  always  rather  theatrical,  but  a  fine  figure  and  noble 
appearance  saved  him  from  looking  ridiculous.  The  Em- 
peror reposed  no  confidence  in  him,  but  he  employed  him, 
because  he  feared  him  in  no  wise,  and  because  he  could  not 
help  believing  in  every  kind  of  flattery.  A  certain  sort  of 
credulity  is  not  rarely  combined  in  the  same  character  with 
distrust ;  and  those  great  men  who  are  the  most  suspicious 
by  nature  are  not  the  least  amenable  to  flattery. 

On  his  return  from  the  campaign  of  Austerlitz,  the  Em- 
peror distributed  further  rewards  to  his  generals. '  To  some 
he  gave  considerable  sums  of  money,  to  reimburse  them  for 
the  expenses  of  the  campaign.  General  Clarke  was  made 
Grand  Officer  of  the  Legion  of  Honor,  in  recognition  of  the 
manner  in  which  he  had  fulfilled  his  duties  as  Governor  of 
Yienna.  Hitherto  Clarke  had  been  treated  with  some  cold- 
ness ;  the  Emperor  showed  him  but  little  confidence,  and 
accused  him  of  retaining  a  secret  affection  for  the  house  of 
Orleans ;  but  he  succeeded  in  convincing  Bonaparte  of  his 


356  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

obsequious  devotion.  General  Clarke,  now  Due  de  Feltre, 
has  for  the  last  three  years  played  a  somewhat  conspicuous 
part,  and  it  may  be  well  to  give  some  particulars  of  his 
career. 

His  uncle,  M.  Shee,  who  was  made  Senator  by  the  Em- 
peror, and  who  is  a  peer  of  France,  was  previous  to  the 
Revolution  secretary-general  to  a  division  of  light  cavalry, 
of  which  the  Duke  of  Orleans  was  colonel-general.  He  was 
accompanied  by  his  nephew,  Clarke,  whom  he  had  sent  for 
from  the  country.*  The  young  man  found  himself  specially 
attached  to  the  house  of  Orleans,  and  it  is  on  this  account, 
perhaps,  that  Bonaparte  suspected  him  of  private  leanings 
toward  that  party.  He  served  the  Revolution  with  zeal,  and 
was  teven  employed,  in  1794  and  1T95,  by  the  Committee  of 
Public  Safety,  in  the  war  administration. 

He  accompanied  Bonaparte  into  Italy,  but  haughty  man- 
ners were  displeasing  to  the  commander-in-chief .  Later  on 
he  was  sent  as  ambassador  to  Tuscany,  and  remained  there 
for  a  considerable  time,  although  he  frequently  applied  for 
his  recall  and  for  employment  in  France.  On  finally  obtain- 
ing these,  he  applied  himself  to  overcoming  Bonaparte's  pre- 
judice against  him  :  he  nattered  him  assiduously,  solicited  the 
favor  of  a  post  in  his  personal  service,  displayed  the  abso- 
lute submission  demanded  by  such  a  master,  and  was  eventu- 

*  It  is  clear  that  the  author  was  induced  to  give  this  finished  sketch  of  Gen- 
eral Clarke,  Due  de  Feltre,  on  account  of  the  prominent  part  taken  by  him  in 
the  early  days  of  the  Restoration,  and  the  effect  produced  by  his  death  in  1818, 
at  the  very  time  that  these  Memoirs  were  being  written.  General  Clarke  was 
born  at  Landrecies  in  1763.  He  was  Minister  of  War  in  1807  and  in  1814. 
He  was  a  peer  of  France,  was  created  a  Marshal  in  1817,  and  was  an  active  in- 
strument in  the  reaction  of  1815.  In  1818  he  was  an  object  of  passionate 
regret  to  the  Right,  who  enthusiastically  upheld  him  in  opposition  to  his  suc- 
cessor, Marshal  Gouvion  Saint-Cyr.  A  few  years  previously,  when  Minister  to 
the  Emperor,  he  had  attracted  notice  by  an  eagerness  to  please  his  master  which 
made  him  unpopular,  and  placed  him  in  the  public  estimation  on  a  level  with 
M.  Maret.  Nevertheless  he  had  the  reputation  of  an  honest  and  guileless  man, 
and,  notwithstanding  the  zeal  with  which  he  served  under  both  regimes,  his  pri- 
vate character  stands  high.— P.  R. 


GENERAL   CLARKE.  35Y 

ally  made  Councilor  of  State  and  private  secretary.  He 
was  very  hard-working  and  punctual,  and  never  wanted  rec- 
reation. He  was  narrow-minded  and  unimaginative,  but 
clear-headed.  He  accompanied  the  Emperor  in  the  first 
Yienna  campaign,  showed  capacity  as  Governor  of  the  city, 
and  received  a  first  reward  on  his  return.  We  shall  hear  of 
him  later  on  as  Minister  of  War,  and  in  every  capacity  as  a 
man  of  second-rate  ability.  His  integrity  has  always  been 
freely  acknowledged ;  he  amassed  no  fortune  except  that 
which  resulted  from  the  savings  of  his  various  salaries. 
Like  M.  Maret,  he  carried  the  language  of  flattery  to  its  ex- 
treme limits. 

His  first  marriage  was  unhappy,  and  he  obtained  a  divorce. 
He  had  one  daughter,  a  gentle  and  agreeable  girl,  whom 
he  gave  in  marriage  while  he  was  in  office  to  the  Yicomte 
Emery  de  Montesquiou-Fezensac,*  whose  military  advance- 
ment, thanks  to  his  father-in-law,  was  very  rapid.f  This 
young  man  is  at  the  present  time  aide-major-general  in  the 
Eoyal  Guards.,  The  Due  de  Feltre's  second  wife  was  an 
excellent  but  insignificant  woman.  By  her  he  had  several 
sons. 

Meanwhile,  M.  de  Talleyrand's  friendliness  toward  M.  de 
Kemusat  brought  me  into  a  closer  acquaintance  with  him. 
He  did  not  as  yet  visit  at  my  house,  but  I  frequently  met 
him,  and  wherever  this  occurred  he  took  more  notice  of  me 
than  formerly.  He  seldom  missed  an  opportunity  of  prais- 
ing my  husband,  and  thus  he  gratified  the  feelings  dearest  to 

*  Nephew  to  the  Abbe*  de  Montesquieu. 

f  M.  de  Fezensac,  afterward  Due  de  Fezensac,  was  made  in  1813,  while  quite 
a  young  man,  general  of  brigade,  but  he  had  been  twelve  or  thirteen  years  in 
the  service.  He  had  served  a  long  time  as  a  private.  He  died  on  November 
18,  186Y.  We  all  were  acquainted  with  him  during  the  late  years  of  his  life. 
He  was  a  sincere  man,  mild  and  conscientious,  and  gifted  with  a  wonderful 
memory.  He  wrote  a  volume  of  interesting  Memoirs,  describing  with  truth  and 
piquancy  certain  sides  of  life  in  the  Imperial  armies.  He  was  related  on  the 
side  of  his  mother,  Mile,  de  la  Live,  to  M.  Mole,  who  appointed  him  ambassador 
to  Spain  in  1837.— P.  R. 


358  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

my  heart ;  and,  if  I  must  speak  the  whole  truth,  he  gratified 
my  vanity  also  by  seeking  me  out  on  all  occasions.  He  won 
me  over  to  him  by  degrees,  and  my  former  prejudice  against 
him  vanished.  Yet  he  would  sometimes  alarm  me  by  cer- 
tain expressions  for  which  I  was  unprepared.  One  day  I  was 
speaking  to  him  of  the  recent  conquest  of  Naples,  and  ven- 
tured to  let  him  perceive  that  I  disapproved  of  our  policy  of 
universal  dethronement.  He  replied  in  the  cold  and  delib- 
erate tone  that  he  knows  so  well  how  to  assume  when  he 
means  to  permit  no  reply,  "  Madame,  we  shall  not  desist  until 
there  shall  no  longer  be  a  Bourbon  on  a  European  throne." 
These  words  gave  me  pain.  I  thought  little,  I  must  admit, 
about  our  royal  family  ;  but  still,  at  the  sound  of  the  name 
of  Bourbon,  certain  recollections  of  my  early  days  awakened 
former  feelings  that  had  faded  rather  than  disappeared. 

I  could  not,  at  the  present  time,  attempt  to  explain  this 
feeling  without  running  the  risk  of  being  accused  of  insin- 
cerity, which  is  absolutely  foreign  to  my  character.  It  may 
be  thought  that,  remembering  the  period  at  which  I  write,  I 
want  gradually  to  prepare  the  way  for  my  own  return  to 
those  opinions  which  everybody  now  hastens  to  parade.  But 
this  is  not  the  case.  In  those  days  I  admired  the  Emperor ; 
I  was  still  attached  to  him,  although  less  fascinated  by  him  ; 
I  believed  him  to  be  necessary  to  France ;  he  appeared  to 
me  to  have  become  her  legitimate  sovereign.  But  all  these 
feelings  were  combined  with  a  tender  reverence  for  the  heirs 
and  all  the  kin  of  Louis  XIV. ;  it  pained  me  deeply  when 
fresh  misfortunes  were  prepared  for  them  and  I  heard  them 
evil  spoken  of.  Bonaparte  had  often  inflicted  suffering  of 
this  kind  on  me.  To  a  man  who  only  appreciated  success, 
Louis  XYI.  must  have  seemed  deserving  of  little  respect% 
He  was  entirely  unjust  toward  him,  and  believed  in  all  the 
popular  stories  against  him,  which  were  the  offspring  of  the 
Revolution.  When  the  conversation  turned  on  that  illus- 
trious and  unfortunate  King,  I  endeavored  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible to  change  the  subject. 


NEW  LADIES-IN-WAITING.  359 

But  to  return.  Such  was  M.  de  Talleyrand's  opinion  at 
that  time  ;  I  will  show  by  degrees,  and  when  the  time  comes, 
how  events  subsequently  modified  it. 

During  this  winter  the  heir  of  the  King  of  Bavaria  came 
on  a  visit  to  our  Court.  He  was  young,  deaf,  not  very  ami- 
able ;  but  he  had  very  polished  manners,  and  he  showed  great 
deference  toward  the  Emperor.  He  had  apartments  at  the 
Tuileries,  two  chamberlains  and  an  equerry  were  placed  at 
his  service,  and  every  attention  was  paid  to  him. 

On  the  10th  of  February  the  list  of  ladies-in-waiting  was 
increased  by  the  names  of  Mme.  Maret,  on  the  request  of 
Mme.  Murat,  and  of  Mmes.  de  Chevreuse,  de  Montmorency- 
Matignon,  and  de  Mortemart. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  was  an  intimate  friend  of  the  Duchesse 
de  Luynes,  and  he  induced  her  to  make  her  daughter-in-law 
accept  a  place  at  Court.  The  Duchess  was  greatly  attached 
to  Mme.  de  Chevreuse.*  The  latter  had  very  pronounced 
opinions  of  her  own,  and  every  one  of  them  distinctly  op- 
posed to  what  was  expected  of  her.  Bonaparte  threatened  ; 
M.  de  Talleyrand  negotiated,  and,  according  to  custom,  ob- 
tained his  way.  Madame  de  Chevreuse  was  pretty,  although 
red-haired,f  and  very  witty,  but  excessively  spoiled  by  her 
family,  willful  and  fantastic.  Her  health  even  then  was 
very  delicate.  The  Emperor  tried  by  coaxing  to  console 
her  for  having  forced  her  into  the  Court.  At  times  he 
would  appear  to  have  succeeded,  and  then  at  others  she 
would  take  no  pains  to  conceal  her  dislike  to  her  position. 
Her  natural  disposition  gave  her  an  attraction  for  the  Em- 
peror, which  others  would  have  vainly  endeavored  to  exert, 
the  charm  of  combat  and  of  victory.  For  she  would  some- 
times seem  to  be  amused  with  the  fetes  and  the  splendor  of 
the  Court ;  and  when  she  appeared  there  in  full  dress  and 

*  Mile,  de  Narbonne-Fritzlar.     Her  brother  was  a  chamberlain. 

f  Madame  de  Chevreuse  was  one  day  rudely  taunted  by  Bonaparte  with  hav- 
ing red  hair.  "  Very  likely,"  she  answered,  "  but  no  man  ever  complained  of  it 
before."— P.  R. 


360  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

apparently  in  good  spirits,  then  the  Emperor,  who  enjoyed 
even  the  smallest  success,  would  laugh  and  say,  "  I  have 
overcome  the  aversion  of  Mme.  de  Chevreuse."  But,  in 
reality,  I  do  not  think  he  ever  did. 

'The  Baronne  de  Montmorency  (now  Duchesse  de  Mont- 
morency),  who  was  extremely  intimate  with  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, had  been  induced  to  join  the  Court,  partly  by  his  per- 
suasions, and  partly  by  her  wish  to  regain  some  extensive 
forest-lands  which  were  seized  by  Government  during  her 
emigration,  but  had  not  yet  been  sold.  Mme.  de  Montmo- 
rency was  extremely  pleasant  at  Court ;  she  demeaned  her- 
self without  either  pride  or  subservience,  appeared  to  enjoy 
herself,  and  made  no  pretense  of  being  there  against  her 
will.*  I  think  she  found  court  life  very  agreeable,  and  that 
possibly  she  may  have  regretted  it.  Her  name  gave  her  an 
advantage,  as  it  does  in  every  place.  The  Emperor  often 
said  that  he  cared  only  for  the  nobility  of  history,  and  he 
certainly  paid  it  great  honor. 

This  reminds  me  of  an  anecdote  concerning  Bonaparte. 
When  he  resolved  on  reconstituting  titles,  he  decided  by  a 
stroke  of  his  pen  that  all  the  ladies-in-waiting  should  be 
countesses.  Mme.  de  Montmorency,  who  stood  in  no  need 
of  a  title,  but  found  herself  obliged  to  take  one,  asked  for 
the  title  of  baroness,  which,  she  said  laughingly,  suited  her 
name  so  well.  "  That  can  not  be,"  replied  Bonaparte,  laugh- 
ing too ;  "  you,  inadame,  are  not  a  sufficiently  good  Chris- 
tian." 

Some  years  later  the  Emperor  restored  to  MM.  de  Mont- 
morency and  de  Mortemart  a  large  portion  of  the  fortune 
they  had  lost.  M.  de  Mortemart,  declining  to  become  an 
equerry  on  account  of  the  too  great  fatigue  of  the  post,  was 
made  Governor  of  Rambouillet.  We  have  all  known  the 
Yicomte  de  Laval-Montmorency,  father  of  the  Yicomte  Ma- 

*  Mme.  de  Matignon,  the  mother  of  the  Duchesse  de  Montmorency,  was  the 
daughter  of  the  Baron  de  Breteuil,  who,  after  his  return  from  emigration,  al- 
ways resided  in  Paris. 


M.  MOLti.  361 

thieu  de  Montmorency,  a  Gentleman  of  Honor  to  Madame, 
Governor  of  Compiegne,  and  one  of  the  most  ardent  admir- 
ers of  Bonaparte. 

From  this  time  forward  there  was  increasing  eagerness  to 
belong  to  the  Emperor's  Court,  and  especially  to  be  presented 
to  him.  His  receptions  became  very  brilliant.  Ambition, 
fear,  vanity,  love  of  amusement  and  novelty,  and  the  desire 
of  advancement,  caused  a  crowd  of  people  to  push  themselves 
forward,  and  the  mixture  of  names  and  ranks  became  greater 
than  ever. 

M.  Mole  joined  the  Government  in  the  month  of  March 
of  this  year.  He  was  the  heir  and  last  descendant  of  Ma- 
thieu  Mole,  and  was  then  twenty-six  years  of  age.  He  was 
born  during  the  Kevolution,  and  had  suffered  from  the  mis- 
fortunes it  caused.  His  father  perished  under  the  tyranni- 
cal rule  of  Kobespierre,  and  he  became  his  own  master  at  an 
early  age.  He  made  use  of  his  freedom  to  devote  himself 
to  serious  and  varied  study.  His  family  and  friends  married 
him,  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  to  Mile,  de  la  Briche,  heiress  to 
a  considerable  fortune,  and  niece  to  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  of 
whom  I  have  already  spoken.  M.  Mole,  who  was  naturally 
of  a  grave  disposition,  soon  became  weary  of  a  merely  world- 
ly life,  and,  having  no  profession,  he  sought  to  fill  up  his 
time  by  literary  compositions,  which  he  showed  to  his  friends. 
Toward  the  end  of  1805  he  wrote  a  short  treatise,  extremely 
metaphysical  and  not  very  clear,  on  a  theory  of  authority 
and  the  will  of  man.  His  friends,  who  were  surprised  at  the 
research  indicated  by  such  a  work,  advised  him  to  print  the 
treatise.  His  youthful  vanity  readily  consented  to  this.  The 
public  looked  indulgently  on  the  work  on  account  of  his 
youth ;  both  depth  and  talent  were  recognized  in  it,  but,  at 
the  same  time,  a  tendency  to  praise  despotic  government, 
which  gave  rise  to  an  impression  that  the  author  aimed  at 
attracting  the  attention  of  him  who  at  that  time  held  the 
destinies  of  all  in  his  hand.  Whether  this  was  really  in  the 
mind  of  the  writer,  or  whether  he  was  horrified  at  the  abuse 


362  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

of  liberty,  and  for  the  first  time  in  his  life  believed  his  coun- 
try to  be  at  rest  and  in  security  under  the  guidance  of  a 
strong  will,  I  do  not  know.  At  any  rate,  M.  Mole  gave  his 
work  to  the  public,  and  it  made  some  sensation. 

After  the  return  from  Yienna,  M.  de  Fontanes,  who  had 
a  great  regard  for  M.  Mole,  read  the  book  to  Bonaparte,  who 
was  greatly  struck  by  it.  The  opinions  it  advanced,  the  su- 
perior mind  it  attested,  and  the  distinguished  name  of  Mole 
attracted  his  attention.  He  sent  for  the  author,  and  praised 
him  as  he  well  knew  how  ;  for  he  had  great  skill  in  the  use 
of  words  seductive  to  the  young.  He  succeeded  in  persuad- 
ing him  to  enter  into  public  life,  promising  him  that  his 
career  should  be  rapid  and  brilliant ;  and,  a  few  days  after 
this  interview,  M.  Mole  was  appointed  one  of  the  auditors 
attached  to  the  Interior  Section.  He  was  a  familiar  friend 
of  M.  d'Houdetot,  his  cousin,  a  grandson  of  her  whom  the 
"  Confessions  "  of  J.  J.  Rousseau  have  made  famous,  and  M. 
Mole  persuaded  "him  to  enter  together  with  himself  on  the 
same  career.  M.  d'Houdetot  was  made  auditor  to  the  Naval 
Section.  His  father  held  a  command  in  the  colonies,  and 
was  taken  prisoner  by  the  English  on  the  capture  of  Marti- 
nique. He  had  passed  a  part  of  his  life  in  the  Isle  de  France, 
and  returned,  bringing  with  him  a  beautiful  wife  and  nine 
children,  five  of  them  girls.  His  daughters  were  all  hand- 
some ;  they  are  now  living  in  Paris.  Some  of  them  are  mar- 
ried ;  one  of  them  is  Mme.  de  Barante,*  the  most  beautiful 
woman  in  Paris  at  the  present  time.f 

*  M.  de  Barante  was  at  the  head  of  the  Indirect  Taxation,  and  was  prefect 
under  Bonaparte.  He  was  a  great  friend  of  Mme.  de  Stae'Ps,  very  liberal  in  his 
opinions,  and  a  clever  man. 

f  My  father,  who,  from  his  youth  upward,  was  on  intimate  terms  with  M. 
Mole  until  the  death  of  the  latter,  has  written  a  good  deal  about  him,  both  in 
articles  for  publication  and  in  manuscript  notes.  The  following  are  his  reflec- 
tions on  the  earlier  part  of  his  career :  "  M.  Mole",  who  was  born  in  1*780,  received 
little  education.  When  scarcely  nineteen  he  married  Caroline  de  la  Briche.  He 
had  been  able,  by  following  public  classes  and  by  superficial  study  of  various 
branches,  to  supply  the  deficiencies  of  his  education,  which,  however,  he  never 


SOCIAL   CONCORD.  363 

The  fusion  that  was  spreading  with  so  much  rapidity 
brought  about  social  concord,  by  mingling  the  interests  of 
all.  M.  Mole,  for  instance,  belonging  on  his  own  side  to  a 
very  distinguished  family,  and  on  his  wife's  to  people  of 
rank — for  Mme.  Mole's  cousins  were  Mmes.  de  Yintimille 
and  de  Fezensac — became  a  link  between  the  Emperor  and 
a  large  circle  of  society.  My  intimacy  with  members  of  his 
family  was  of  old  date,  and  I  was  glad  to  see  them  taking 
their  share  of  the  new  places  which  were  within  the  reach 
of  those  who  chose  to  take  them.  Opinions  abated  in  the 
face  of  self-interest ;  party  spirit  began  to  die  out ;  ambition, 
pleasure,  and  luxury  drew  people  together ;  and  every  day 
discontent  was  lessened. 

If  Bonaparte,  who  was  so  successful  in  conciliating  indi- 
viduals, had  but  gone  a  step  further,  and,  instead  of  govern- 
ing by  force  alone,  had  yielded  to  the  reaction  which  longed 
for  repose ;  if,  now  that  he  had  conquered  the  present  mo- 
ment, he  had  made  himself  master  of  the  future,  by  creating 
durable  institutions  independent  of  his  own  caprice — there 
is  little  doubt  but  that  his  victory  over  our  recollections,  our 
prejudices,  and  our  regrets  would  have  been  as  lasting  as  it 
was  remarkable.  But  it  must  be  confessed  that  liberty,  true 

completely  overcame.  He  had  a  gifted  mind,  upright,  receptive,  and  elegant, 
and  he  possessed  to  the  highest  degree  the  power  of  complete  sympathy  in  con- 
versation. In  youth  he  had  a  tendency  to  severity,  to  philosophy  even ;  but  this 
diminished  as  he  grew  older.  His  'Essai  de  Morale  et  de  Politique,'  founded  on 
the  writings  of  Bonald,  both  as  regards  style  and  matter,  is  a  poor  book ;  yet  it 
is  so  superior  in  thought  and  in  expression  to  anything  he  was  able  to  do  at  the 
age  of  forty,  that  even  now  I  can  scarcely  understand  how  he  wrote  it  Expe- 
rience, ambition,  and  contact  with  the  world  considerably  modified  his  character. 
This  was  a  loss  to  him,  but  at  the  same  time  a  greater  gain.  He  took  the  fancy 
of  the  Emperor.  From  the  beginning  Mole  took  a  lofty  view  of  his  own  position. 
He  retained  a  serious  manner,  which  became  stiff  and  haughty,  except  toward 
people  whom  he  wished  to  please,  in  which  case  he  could  do  so  to  perfection. 
He  was  admitted  to  exceptionally  frequent  converse  with  the  Emperor.  It  was 
thus  that  he  rose ;  and,  in  fact,  during  his  Ministry,  he  did  little  more  than  talk 
to  Napoleon.  M.  Frederic  d'Houdetot,  a  first  cousin  of  Mme.  Mold's,  was  pre- 
fect, and  subsequently  deputy,  under  the  various  successive  regimes,  until  his 
death,  which  took  place  under  the  second  Empire. — P.  R. 


364  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B^MUSAT. 

liberty,  was  wanting  everywhere ;  and  the  fault  of  the  nation 
consisted  in  not  perceiving  this  in  time.  As  I  have  said  be- 
fore, the  Emperor  improved  the  finances,  -and  encouraged 
trade,  science,  and  art ;  merit  was  rewarded  in  every  class ; 
but  all  this  was  spoiled  by  the  stamp  of  slavery.  Being  re- 
solved on  ruling  everything  himself,  and  for  his  own  advan- 
tage, he  always  put  himself  forward  as  the  ultimate  aim.  It 
is  said  that  on  starting  for  the  first  campaign  in  Italy,  he  told 
a  friend  who  was  editor  of  a  newspaper :  "  Recollect  in  your 
accounts  of  our  victories  to  speak  of  me,  always  of  me.  Do 
you  understand?"  This  "me"  was  the  ceaseless  cry  of 
purely, egoistical  ambition.  " Quote  me"  " Sing,  praise,  and 
paint  me"  he  would  say  to  orators,  to  musicians,  to  poets, 
and  to  painters.  "  I  will  buy  you  at  your  own  price ;  but 
you  must  all  be  purchased."  Thus,  notwithstanding  his  de- 
sire to  make  his  reign  famous  by  gathering  together  every 
kind  of  prodigy,  he  neutralized  his  efforts  and  ours  by  deny- 
ing to  talent  that  noble  independence  which  alone  can  de- 
velop invention  or  genius  of  any  kind. 


CHAPTEK  XYIII. 

(1806.) 

The  Emperor's  Civil  List — His  Household  and  its  Expenses — Dress  of  the  Empress 
and  of  Mme.  Murat — Louis  Bonaparte — Prince  Borghese — Fetes  at  Court — The 
Empress's  Family — Marriage  of  Princess  Stephanie — Jealousy  of  the  Empress — 
Theatricals  at  Malmaison. 

I  THINK  it  will  not  be  amiss  at  this  point  to  devote  a  few 
pages  to  the  interior  management  of  what  was  called  "  the 
Emperor's  household."  Although,  at  the  present  time,  his 
own  private  concerns  and  those  of  his  Court  have  even  more 
completely  passed  away  than  his  policy  and  his  power,  still 
there  will  be  perhaps  some  interest  in  an  account  of  his  mi- 
nute regulation  of  the  actions  and  the  expenditure  of  each 
person  belonging  to  the  Court.  He  was  always  and  in  all 
things  the  same,  and  this  fidelity  to  the  system  he  had  irrev- 
ocably adopted  is  one  of  the  most  singular  sides  of  his  char- 
acter. The  details  I  am  about  to  give  relate  to  several  periods 
of  his  reign ;  but  from  the  year  1806  the  rules  of  his  house- 
hold were  pretty  nearly  invariable,  and  the  slight  modifica- 
tions which  they  sometimes  received  scarcely  altered  the 
general  plan  of  their  arrangement.  I  shall  therefore  sketch 
this  general  plan,  aided  by  the  excellent  memory  of  M.  de 
Eemusat,  who  during  ten  years  was  both  a  spectator  and  an 
actor  in  the  scenes  I  am  about  to  describe.* 

*  The  details  to  which  this  chapter  is  devoted  will  perhaps  appear  trivial, 
but,  that  we  may  not  lose  the  spirit  of  these  Memoirs,  it  is  important  to  omit 
nothing  from  them.  Such  descriptions  have  always  been  admissible,  and  the 
most  celebrated  historians  of  the  seventeenth  century  have  painted  for  us  the 
minutest,  and  I  had  almost  said  the  meanest,  particulars  of  the  daily  life  of 


366  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

The  civil  list  of  France,  under  Bonaparte,  amounted  to  a 
sum  of  twenty-five  millions ;  in  addition  to  this,  crown  lands 
and  forests  brought  in  three  millions,  and  the  civil  list  of 
Italy  eight  millions,  of  which  he  granted  four  to  Prince 
Eugene.  From  Piedmont,  partly  by  the  civil  list  and  partly 
by  crown  property,  he  received  three  millions ;  after  Prince 
Borghese  had  been  appointed  Governor,  only  half  that  sum. 
Finally,  four  millions  came  from  Tuscany,  which  were  also 
afterward  shared  with  Mme.  Bacciochi,  when  she  became 
Grand  Duchess  of  Tuscany.  The  fixed  revenue  of  the  Em- 
peror amounted,  therefore,  to  35,500,000  francs. 

He  kept  at  his  own  disposal  the  greater  part  of  the  sum 
allotted  to  the  secret  service  of  foreign  affairs,  and  also  the 
eighteen  hundred  thousand  francs  allotted  to  the  theatres,  of 
which  barely  twelve  hundred  thousand  were  voted  by  the 
yearly  budget  for  their  support.  He  dispensed  the  remain- 
der in  presents  to  actors,*  artists,  men  of  letters,  or  even  to 
officers  of  his  household. 

The  fund  for  the  maintenance  of  the  police,  after  sub- 
tracting the  expenses  of  the  department,  was  also  at  his  dis- 
posal ;  and  this  yielded  a  considerable  sum  every  year,  being 
derived  from  the  tax  on  gaming-houses,  which  amounted  to 
more  than  four  million  francs.f  He  could  also  dispose  of 
the  share  that'  the  Government  had  reserved  to  itself  on  all 

Louis  XIV.,  and  of  the  principal  people  of  his  time.  It  should  be  observed 
also  that  Mme.  de  Remusat  must,  at  the  time  she  was  writing,  have  been  all  the 
more  impressed  by  her  recollections  of  the  splendor  of  the  Empire,  inasmuch  as, 
during  the  earlier  years  of  the  Restoration,  the  poverty  of  France,  the  age,  tastes, 
and  habits  'of  the  royal  family,  and  the  apathy  characteristic  of  the  Bourbons, 
gave  to  the  Court  an  air  of  simplicity  which  formed  a  strong  contrast  with  Im- 
perial display.  That  display,  however,  has  since  then  been  so  greatly  surpassed 
that  what  is  described  here  as  excessive  luxury  may  appear  simplicity  itself  to 
our  contemporaries. — P.  R. 

*  His  own  liking  for  certain  actors  generally  regulated  these  grants.  He 
frequently  paid  Talma's  debts,  and  made  him  gifts  of  twenty,  thirty,  and  forty 
thousand  francs  at  a  time. 

f  Fouche,  while  Minister,  made  his  fortune  by  these  taxes  on  gaming-tables. 
Savary  drew  a  thousand  francs  a  day  from  them. 


THE  EMPEROR'S  HOUSEHOLD.  367 

newspapers,  which  must  have  brought  in  nearly  a  million 
francs ;  and,  finally,  of  the  sum  yielded  by  stamps  on  pass- 
ports and  on  permits  to  carry  arms. 

The  sums  levied  during  war  were  placed  to  the  extraor- 
dinary credit,  of  which  Bonaparte  disposed  as  he  liked.  He 
frequently  retained  a  large  portion,  which  he  made  use  of  to 
supply  the  cost  of  the  Spanish  war,  and  for  the  immense 
preparations  for  the  Russian  campaign.  Finally,  he  convert- 
ed a  considerable  portion  into  specie  and  diamonds ;  these 
were  deposited  in  the  cellars  of  the  Tuileries,  and  defrayed 
the  cost  of  the  war  of  1814,  when  the  destruction  of  public 
credit  had  paralyzed  other  resources. 

The  utmost  order  prevailed  in  Bonaparte's  household; 
liberal  salaries  were  paid  to  every  one,  but  all  was  so  regu- 
lated that  no  official  could  use  for  himself  the  sums  that 
were  intrusted  to  him. 

His  great  officers  received  a  fixed  salary  of  forty  thousand 
francs.  The  last  two  years  of  his  reign  he  endowed  the 
posts  of  great  officers  with  a  considerable  income,  besides  the 
sums  granted  to  the  individuals  who  filled  them. 

The  posts  of  Grand  Marshal,  of  Grand  Chamberlain,  and 
of  Grand  Equerry  were  each  endowed  with  one  hundred 
thousand  francs ;  those  of  High  Almoner  and  Grand  Yeneur 
with  eighty  thousand  francs ;  that  of  Grand  Master  of  Cere- 
monies with  sixty  thousand.  The  Intendant  and  the  Trea- 
surer each  received  forty  thousand  francs.  M.  Daru  was  the 
first  Intendant;  he  was  succeeded  by  M.  de  Champagny 
when  the  latter  retired  from  the  Ministry  of  Foreign  Affairs. 
The  First  Prefect  of  the  Palace  and  the  Gentleman  of  Hon^ 
or  to  the  Empress  each  received  thirty  thousand  francs. 

M.  de  Nansouty,  my  brother-in-law,  was  for  some  time 
First  Chamberlain  to  the  Empress;  but,  this  post  having 
been  abolished,  he  was  made  First  Equerry  to  the  Emperor. 
The  Lady  of  Honor  received  forty  thousand  francs;  the 
Mistress  of  the  Robes,  thirty  thousand.  There  were  eighteen 
Chamberlains.  Those  of  oldest  date  received  either  twelve, 
28 


368  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

six,  or  three  thousand  francs,  varying  according  to  a  sum 
fixed  by  the  Emperor  every  year ;  the  others  were  honorary. 
Bonaparte,  moreover,  regulated  every  salary  in  his  household 
annually,  augmenting  thereby  the  dependence  of  us  all  by 
the  uncertainty  in  which  we  were  kept. 

The  Equerries  received  twelve  thousand  francs  ;  the  Pre- 
fects of  the  Palace,  or  Maitres  d'H6tel,  fifteen  thousand,  and 
the  Master  of  Ceremonies  a  like  sum.  Each  aide-de-camp  re- 
ceived twenty-four  thousand,  as  an  officer  of  the  household. 

The  Grand  Marshal,  or  Master  of  the  Household,  super- 
intended all  the  expenses  of  the  table,  of  the  domestic  ser- 
vice, lighting  and  heating,  etc.  These  expenses  amounted 
to  nearly  two  millions. 

Bonaparte's  table  was  abundant  and  well  served.  The 
plate  was  of  silver  and  very  handsome ;  on  great  occasions 
the  dinner  service  was  of  silvjer-gilt.  Mme.  Murat  and  the 
Princess  Borghese  used  dinner-services  of  silver-gilt. 

The  Grand  Marshal  was  the  chief  of  the  Prefects  of  the 
Palace;  his  uniform  was  amethyst-colored,  embroidered  in 
silver.  The  Prefects  of  the  Palace  wore  the  same  colored 
uniform,  less  richly  embroidered. 

The  expenditure  of  the  Grand  Equerry  (Master  of  the 
Horse)  amounted  to  three  or  four  millions.  There  were 
about  twelve  hundred  horses.  The  carriages,  which  were 
more  ponderous  than  elegant,  were  all  painted  green.  The 
Empress  had  some  equipages,  among  them  some  pretty  open 
carriages,  but  no  separate  stable  establishment.  The  Grand 
Equerry  and  the  other  Equerries  wore  a  uniform  of  dark 
blue,  embroidered  in  silver. 

The  Grand  Chamberlain  had  charge  of  all  the  attendance 
in  the  interior  of  all  the  palaces,  of  the  wardrobe,  the  Court 
theatricals,  the  fetes,  the  chapel  choir,  of  the  Emperor's 
Chamberlains,  and  of  those  of  the  Empress.  The  expendi- 
ture on  all  these  scarcely  exceeded  three  millions.  His  uni- 
form was  red,  with  silver  embroidery.*  The  Grand  Master 

*  The  embroidery  was  the  same  for  all  the  great  officers. 


INCREASED  EXPENDITURES.  369 

of  Ceremonies  received  little  more^than  three  hundred  thou- 
sand francs;  his  costume  was  of  violet  and. silver.  The 
Grand  Veneur,  or  Master  of  the  Hunt,  received  seven  hun- 
dred thousand  francs :  he  wore  green  and  silver.  The  ex- 
penditure on  the  chapel  was  three  hundred  thousand  francs. 

The  decoration  of  the  apartments,  as  well  as  the  care  of 
the  buildings,  was  in  charge  of  the  Intendant.  The  expenses 
of  these  would  amount  to  five  or  six  millions. 

It  will  be  seen  that,  on  an  average,  the  expenditure  of 
the  Emperor's  household  would  amount  to  fifteen  or  sixteen 
millions  of  francs  annually. 

In  later  years  he  built  extensively,  and  the  expenditure 
was  increased. 

Every  year  he  ordered  hangings  and  furniture  for  the 
various  palaces  from  Lyons.  This  was  with  a  view  to  en- 
coura'ging  the  manufactures  of  that  city.  For  the  same 
reason  he  bought  handsome  pieces  of  furniture  in  mahog- 
any, which  were  placed  in  storerooms,  and  also  bronzes, 
etc.  Porcelain  manufacturers  had  orders  to  supply  complete 
services  of  extreme  beauty. 

On  the  return  of  the  King,  the  palaces  were  all  found  to 
be  newly  furnished,  and  the  furniture  stores  quite  full. 

But,  including  all  these  things,  the  expenditure  never 
exceeded  twenty  millions,  even  in  the  most  costly  years, 
such  as  those  of  the  coronation  and  of  the  marriage. 

Bonaparte's  expenditure  on  dress  was  put  down  on  the 
budget  at  forty  thousand  francs.  Sometimes  it  slightly  ex- 
ceeded this  sum.  During  campaigns  it  was  necessary  to 
send  him  both  linen  and  clothes  'to  several  places  at  once. 
The  slightest  sense  of  inconvenience,  or  the  smallest  differ- 
ence of  quality  in  the  linen  or  cloth,  would  make  him  throw 
aside  a  coat  or  any  other  garment. 

He  always  said  he  wished  to  dress  like  a  simple  officer  of 
his  own  Guards,  and  grumbled  continually  at  what,  as  he 
said,  "  he  was  made  to  spend  " ;  while,  from  his  caprice  or 
awkwardness,  the  entire  renewal  of  his  wardrobe  was  con- 


370  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B^MUSAT. 

stantly  necessary.  Among  other  destructive  habits,  he  had 
that  of  stirring  the  wood-fires  with  his  foot,  thereby  scorch- 
ing his  shoes  and  boots.  This  generally  happened  when  he 
was  in  a  passion ;  at  such  times  he  would  violently  kick  the 
blazing  logs  in  the  nearest  fireplace. 

M.  de  Remusat  was  for  several  years  Keeper  of  the 
Wardrobe,  receiving  no  emoluments.  When  M.  de  Turenne 
succeeded  to  that  post,  a  salary  of  twelve  thousand  francs 
was  awarded  to  him. 

Every  year  the  Emperor  himself  drew  up  a  scheme  of 
household  expenditure  with  scrupulous  care  and  remarkable 
economy.  During  the  last  quarter  of  each  year  the  head  of 
each  department  regulated  his  expenses  for  the  following 
twelvemonth.  When  this  was  accomplished,  a  council  was 
held  and  everything  was  carefully  discussed.  This  council 
consisted  of  the  Grand  Marshal,  who  presided,  the  great 
officers,  the  Intendant,  and  the  Treasurer  to  the  Crown. 
The  expenses  of  the  Empress's  household  were  comprised 
in  the  accounts  of  the  Grand  Chamberlain,  on  whose  budget 
they  were  entered.  In  these  councils  the  Grand  Marshal 
and  the  Treasurer  undertook  to  defend  the  Emperor's  in- 
terests. The  consultation  being  over,  the  Grand  Marshal 
took  the  accounts  to  the  Emperor,  who  examined  them  him- 
self, and  returned  them  with  marginal  notes.  After  a  short 
interval,  the  council  met  again,  under  the  presidency  of  the 
Emperor  himself,  who  went  over  each  item  of  expenditure 
anew.  These  consultations  were  generally  repeated  several 
times ;  the  accounts  of  each  department  were  then  returned 
to  its  chief,  and  fair  copies  of  them  were  made,  after  which 
they  passed  through  the  hands  of  the  Intendant,  who  finally 
inspected  them,  together  with  the  Emperor,  in  presence  of 
the  Grand  Marshal.  By  these  means  all  expenditure  was 
fixed,  and  seldom  indeed  did  any  of  the  great  officers  obtain 
the  sums  for  which  they  had  asked. 

Bonaparte's  hour  for  rising  was  irregular,  but  usually  it 
was  seven  o'clock.  If  he  woke  during  the  night,  he  would 


THE  EMPEROR'S  HABITS.  371 

resume  his  .work,  or  take  a  bath  or  a  meal.  He  generally 
awoke  depressed,  and  apparently  in  pain.  He  suffered  fre- 
quently from  spasms  in  the  stomach,  which  produced  vomit- 
ing. At  times  this  appeared  to  alarm  him  greatly,  as  if  he 
feared  he  had  taken  poison,  and  then  it  was  difficult  to  pre- 
vent him  from  increasing  the  sickness  by  taking  emetics.* 

The  only  persons  who  had  the  right  of  entry  into  his 
dressing-room  without  being  announced  were  the  Grand 
Marshal  and  the  principal  physician.  The  Keeper  of  the 
Wardrobe  was  announced,  but  was  almost  always  admitted. 
He  would  have  wished  M.  de  Re*musat  to  employ  these 
morning  visits  in  giving  him  an  account  of  all  that  was  said 
or  done  at  Court  or  in  the  city ;  but  my  husband  invariably 
declined  the  task,  and  persevered  in  his  determination  with 
praiseworthy  obstinacy. 

The  other  physicians  or  surgeons  on  duty  might  not  come 
unless  they  were  summoned.  Bonaparte  seemed  to  put  no 
great  faith  in  medicine — it  was  frequently  a  matter  of  jest- 
ing with  him ;  but  he  had  great  confidence  in  Corvisart,  and 
much  esteem  for  him.  He  had  good  health  and  a  strong 
constitution ;  but,  when  he  suffered  from  any  indisposition, 
he  became  uneasy  and  nervous.  He  was  occasionally  troubled 
with  a  slight  affection  of  the  skin,  and  sometimes  complained 
of  his  liver.  He  ate  moderately,  drank  little,  and  indulged 
in  no  excesses  of  any  kind.  He  took  a  good  deal  of  coffee. 

While  dressing,  he  was  usually  silent,  unless  a  discussion 
arose  between  him  and  Corvisart  on  some  medical  subject. 
In  everything  he  liked  to  go  straight  to  the  point,  and,  if  any 
one  was  mentioned  as  being  ill,  his  first  question  was  always, 
"Will  he  die?"  A  doubtful  answer  displeased  him,  and 
would  make  him  argue  on  the  inefficiency  of  medical  science. 

He  acquired  with  great  difficulty  the  art  of  shaving  him- 
self. M.  de  Eemusat  induced  him  to  undertake  this  task  on 
seeing  that  he  was  uneasy  and  nervous  under  the  hands  of  a 
barber.  After  many  trials,  and  when  he  had  finally  succeed- 

*  The  principal  physician,  Corvisart,  gave  me  these  details. 


372  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

ed,  lie  often  said  that  the  advice  to  shave  himself  with  his 
own  hand  had  been  of  signal  service  to  him. 

Bonaparte  so  thoroughly  accustomed  himself  during  his 
reign  to  make  no  account  of  those  about  him,  that  this  ha- 
bitual disregard  pervaded  all  his  habits.  He  had  not  any  of 
the  delicacy  that  is  ordinarily  imparted  by  training  and  edu- 
cation, and  would  make  his  toilet  in  the  most  thorough  fash- 
ion in  the  presence  of  any  person  whomsoever.  In  the  same 
way,  if  he  got  impatient  while  his  valet  was  dressing  him, 
he  would  fly  into  a  passion,  heedless  of  all  respect  for  him- 
self or  others.  He  would  throw  any  garment  that  did  not 
please  him  on  the  floor  or  into  the  fire.  He  attended  to  his 
hands  and  nails  with  great  care.  Several  pairs  of  nail-scis- 
sors had  to  be  in  readiness,  as  he  would  break  or  throw  them 
away  if  they  were  not  sufficiently  sharp.  He  never  made 
use  of  any  perfume  except  eau  de  Cologne,  but  of  that  he 
would  get  through  sixty  bottles  in  a  month.  He  considered 
it  a  very  wholesome  practice  to  sprinkle  himself  thoroughly 
with  eau  de  Cologne.  Personal  cleanliness  was  with  him  a 
matter  of  calculation,  for,  as  I  said  before,  he  was  naturally 
careless. 

When  his  toilet  was  concluded,  he  went  to  his  cabinet, 
where  his  private  secretary  was  in  attendance.  Precisely  at 
nine  o'clock,  the  Chamberlain  on  duty,  who  had  arrived  at 
the  palace  at  eight  A.  M.*,  and  had  carefully  inspected  the 
whole  suite  of  rooms,  that  all  might  be  in  perfect  order,  and 
seen  that  the  servants  were  at  their  posts,  knocked  at  the 
door  and  announced  the  levee.  He  never  entered  the  cabi- 
net unless  told  to  come  in  by  the  Emperor.  I  have  already 
given  an  account  of  these  levees.  When  they  were  over, 
Bonaparte  frequently  gave  private  audiences  to  some  of  the 
principal  persons  present — princes,  ministers,  high  officials 
or  prefects  on  leave.  Those  who  had  not  the  right  of  entry 
to  the  levee  could  only  obtain  an  audience  by  applying  to 
the  Chamberlain  on  duty,  who  presented  their  names  to  the 
Emperor.  He  generally  refused  to  see  the  applicants. 


MINISTERIAL   COUNCILS.  373 

The  levee  and  audiences  would  last  until  the  hour  of 
breakfast.  That  meal  was  served  at  eleven  o'clock,  in  what 
was  called  the  salon  de  service,  the  same  apartment  in  which 
he  held  private  audiences  and  received  his  ministers.  The 
Prefect  of  the  Palace  announced  breakfast,  and  remained 
present,  standing  all  the  time.  During  breakfast  the  Em- 
peror received  artists  or  actors.  He  would  eat  quickly  of 
two  or  three  dishes,  and  finish  with  a  large  cup  of  coffee 
without  milk.  After  breakfast  he  returned  to  his  work. 
The  salon  of  which  I  have  just  spoken  was  ordinarily  occu- 
pied by  the  Colonel-General  of  the  Guards  on  duty  for  the 
week,  the  Chamberlain,  the  Equerry,  the  Prefect  of  the 
Palace,  and,  on  a  hunting  morning,  one  of  the  officers  of 
the  hunt. 

The  ministerial  councils  were  held  on  fixed  days.  There 
were  three  State  councils  a  week.  For  five  or  six  years 
the  Emperor  frequently  presided  over  them,  his  Colonel- 
General  and  the  Chamberlain  being  in  attendance  on 
him.  He  is  said  to  have  generally  displayed  remarkable 
ability  in  carrying  on  or  suggesting  discussions.  He  fre- 
quently astonished  his  hearers  by  observations  full  of  lumin- 
ousness  and  depth  on  subjects  which  would  have  seemed 
to  be  quite  beyond  his  reach.  In  more  recent  times  he 
showed  less  tolerance  for  others  in  these  discussions,  and 
adopted  a  more  imperious  tone.  The  State  council,  or 
that  of  the  Ministers,  or  his  own  private  work,  lasted  to 
six  P.  M. 

After  1806  he  almost  always  dined  alone  with  his  wife, 
except  when  the  Court  was.  at  Fontainebleau ;  he  would 
then  invite  guests  to  his  table.  He  had  all  courses  of  the 
dinner  placed  before  him  at  once ;  and  he  ate  without  pay- 
ing any  attention  to  his  food,  helping  himself  to  whatever 
was  at  hand,  sometimes  taking  preserves  or  creams  before 
touching  the  more  solid  dishes.  The  Prefect  of  the  Palace 
was  present  during  dinner;  two  pages  waited,  and  were 
assisted  by  the  footmen.  The  dinner-hour  was  very  irregu- 


3Y4:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MTTSAT. 

lar.  If  there  happened  to  be  any  important  business  re- 
quiring his  immediate  attention,  Bonaparte  worked  on, 
detaining  the  Council  until  six,  seven,  or  even  eight  o'clock 
at  night,  without  showing  the  smallest  fatigue,  or  ap- 
pearing to  feel  the  need  of  food.  Mme.  Bonaparte  waited 
for  him  with  admirable  patience,  and  never  uttered  a  com- 
plaint. 

The  evenings  were  very  short.  I  have  already  said  how 
they  were  spent.  During  the  winter  of  1806  there  were 
many  small  dancing  entertainments  given,  both  at  the  Tuile- 
ries  and  by  the  Princes.  The  Emperor  would  make  his 
appearance  at  them  for  a  few  minutes,  and  always  looked 
excessively  bored.  The  routine  of  the  coucher  (retiring 
for  the  night)  was  the  same  as  it  was  in  the  morning,  except 
that  the  attendants  came  in  last  to  receive  orders.  The  Em- 
peror in  undressing  and  going  to  bed  had  no  one  near  him 
except  the  valets  de  chambre. 

No  one  slept  in  his  chamber.  His  Mameluke  lay 
near  the  inner  entrance.  The  aide-de-camp  of  the  day 
slept  in  the  anteroom  with  his  head  against  the  door.  In 
the  rooms  on  the  other  side  of  this  salon  or  anteroom,  a 
Marshal  of  the  Home  Guard  and  two  footmen  kept  watch 
all  night. 

No  sentinel  was  ever  seen  in  the  interior  of  the  palace. 
At  the  Tuileries  there  was  one  upon  the  staircase,  because 
the  staircase  is  open  to  the  public,  and  they  were  everywhere 
at  the  outer  doors.  Bonaparte  was  very  well  protected  by 
very  few  persons ;  this  was  the  care  of  the  Grand  Marshal. 
The  police  of  the  palace  was  extremely  well  managed.  The 
name  of  every  person  who  entered  its  doors  was  always 
known.  No  one  resided  there  except  the  Grand  Marshal, 
who  ate  there,  and  whose  servants  wore  the  Emperor's  liv- 
ery ;  but  of  these  there  were  only  the  valets  de  chambre  and 
the  femmes  de  chambre.  The  Lady  of  Honor  had  an  apart- 
ment which  Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld  never  occupied.  At 
the  time  of  the  second  marriage  Bonaparte  wished  Mme.  de 


THE  EMPRESS'S  PERSONAL  EXPENSES.          375 

Montebello*  to  live  there  altogether.  In  the  time  of  the 
Empress  Josephine  the  Comtesse  d'Arberg  and  her  daugh- 
ter, who  had  come  from  Brussels  to  be  Lady  of  the  Palace, 
were  always  lodged  in  the  palace.  At  Saint  Cloud  all  the 
attendants  resided  there.  The  Grand  Equerry  lived  at  the 
stables,  which  were  or  are  those  of  the  King.f  The  Inten- 
dant  and  the  Treasurer  were  installed  there. 

The  Empress  Josephine  had  six  hundred  thousand  francs 
for  her  personal  expenses.  This  sum  in  no  degree  sufficed 
her,  and  she  incurred  many  debts  annually.  A  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  francs  were  allowed  her  for  her  charities. 
The  Archduchess  had  but  three  hundred  thousand  francs, 
and  sixty  thousand  for  her  private  purse.  The  reason  of 
this  difference  was,  that  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  compelled  to 
assist  many  poor  relations,  whose  claims  on  her  were  great 
and  frequent.  She  having  certain  connections  in  France 
and  the  Archduchess  none,  Mme.  Bonaparte  was  naturally 
obliged  to  spend  more  money.  She  gave  much  away,  but, 
as  she  never  made  her  presents  from  her  own  resources,  but 
bought  incessantly,  her  generosity  only  augmented  her  debts 
to  an  appalling  degree. 

Notwithstanding  the  wishes  of  her  husband,  she  could 
never  submit  to  either  order  or  etiquette  in  her  private  life. 
He  was  unwilling  that  any  salesman  of  any  kind  should  be 
received  by  her,  but  was  obliged  to  relinquish  this  point. 
Her  small  private  apartments  were  crowded  by  these  people, 
as  well  as  by  artists  of  all  kinds.  She  had  a  perfect  mania 
for  being  painted,  and  gave  her  pictures  to  whomsoever 
wanted  them — relations,  friends,  femmes  de  chambre,  and 
even  to  her  tradespeople,  who  brought  her  constantly  dia- 
monds and  jewels,  stuffs  and  gewgaws  of  all  kinds.  She 
bought  everything,  rarely  asking  the  price,  and  the  greater 

*  La  Marechale  Lannes. 

f  Hotel  de  Longueville,  on  the  Carrousel.  It  is  unnecessary  to  say  that 
these  stables  and  this  hotel  were  demolished  at  the  time  of  the  changes  made 
in  the  Louvre. 


376  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  IttiMUSAT. 

part  of  the  time  forgot  what  she  had  bought.  From  the 
beginning  she  had  signified  to  her  Lady  of  Honor  and  her 
Lady  in  Waiting  that  they  were  not  to  interfere  with  her 
wardrobe.  All  matters  of  that  kind  were  arranged  between 
herself  and  her  femmes  de  chanibre,  of  whom  she  had  six  or 
eight,  I  think. 

She  rose  at  nine  o'clock.  Her  toilet  consumed  much 
time ;  a  part  of  it  was  entirely  private,  when  she  lavished 
unwearied  efforts  on  the  preservation  of  her  person  and  on 
its  embellishment,  with  the  aid  of  paint  and  powder.  When 
all  this  was  accomplished,  she  wrapped  herself  in  a  long  and 
very  elegant  peignoir  trimmed  with  lace,  and  placed  herself 
under  the  hands  of  her  hair-dresser.  Her  chemises  and  skirts 
were  embroidered  and  trimmed.  She  changed  all  her  linen 
three  times  each  day,  and  never  wore  any  stockings  that  were 
not  new.  While  her  hair  was  being  dressed,  if  we  presented 
ourselves  at  her  door,  we  were  admitted.  When  this  process 
was  finished,  huge  baskets  were  brought  in  containing  many 
different  dresses,  shawls,  and  hats.  There  were  in  summer 
muslin  or  percale  robes,  much  embroidered  and  trimmed  ; 
in  winter  there  were  redingotes  of  stuff  or  of  velvet.  From 
these  baskets  she  selected  her  costume  for  the  day,  and  al- 
ways wore  in  the  morning  a  hat  covered  with  feathers  or 
flowers,  and  wraps  that  made  considerable  drapery  about 
her.  The  number  of  her  shawls  was  between  three  and  four 
hundred.  She  had  dresses  made  of  them,  coverings  for  her 
bed,  cushions  for  her  dog.  She  always  wore  one  in  the 
morning,  which  she  draped  about  her  shoulders  with  a  grace 
that  I  never  saw  equaled.  Bonaparte,  who  thought  these 
shawls  covered  her  too  much,  tore  them  off,  and  more  than 
once  threw  them  in  the  fire ;  after  which  she  would  then 
send  for  another.  She  purchased  all  that  were  brought  to 
her,  no  matter  at  what  price.  I  have  seen  her  buy  shawls 
for  which  their  owner  asked  eight,  ten,  and  twelve  thousand 
francs.  They  were  the  great  extravagance  of  this  Court, 
where  those  which  cost  only  fifty  louis  were  looked  at  dis- 


NEW  COSTUMES.  377 

dainf  ullj,  and  where  the  women  boasted  of  the  price  they 
had  paid  for  those  they  wore.* 

I  have  already  described  the  life  which  Mme.  Bonaparte 
led.  This  life  never  varied  in  any  respect.  She  never 
opened  a  book,  she  never  took  up  a  pen,  and  never  touched 
a  needle ;  and  yet  she  never  seemed  to  be  in  the  least  bored. 
She  was  not  fond  of  the  theatre ;  the  Emperor  did  not  wish 
her  to  go  there  without  him,  and  receive  applause  which  he 
did  not  share.  She  walked  only  when  she  was  at  Malmaison, 
a  dwelling  that  she  never  ceased  to  improve,  and  on  which 
she  had  spent  enormous  sums. 

Bonaparte  was  extremely  irritated  by  these  expenditures. 
He  would  fly  into  a  passion,  and  his  wife  would  weep,  prom- 
ising to  be  wiser  and  more  prudent ;  after  which  she  would 
go  on  in  the  same  way,  and  in  the  end  he  was  obliged  to  pay 
the  bills.  The  evening  toilet  was  as  careful  as  that  of  the 
morning.  Everything  was  elegant  in  the  extreme.  We 
rarely  saw  the  same  dresses  and  the  same  flowers  appear  the 
second  time.  In  the  evening  the  Empress  appeared  without 
a  hat,  with  flowers,  pearls,  or  precious  stones  in  her  hair. 
Then  her  dresses  showed  her  figure  to  perfection,  and  the 
most  exquisite  toilet  was  that  which  was  most  becoming  to 
her.  The  smallest  assembly,  the  most  informal  dance,  was 
always  an  occasion  for  her  to  order  a  new  costume,  in  spite 
of  the  hoards  of  dresses  which  accumulated  in  the  various 
palaces ;  for  she  had  a  mania  for  keeping  everything.  It 
would  be  utterly  impossible  for  me  to  give  any  idea  of  the 
sums  she  spent  in  this  way.  At  every  dressmaker's  and  mil- 
liner's in  Paris,  go  in  when  we  would,  we  were  sure  to  find 
something  being  made  for  her  or  ordered  by  her.  I  have 
seen  several  lace  robes,  at  forty,  fifty,  and  even  a  hundred 
thousand  francs  each.  It  is  almost  incredible  that  this  pas- 
sion for  dress,  which  was  so  entirely  satisfied,  should  never 

*  Of  course,  my  readers  know  that  these  were  Cashmere  shawls,  which  the 
Egyptian  campaign  and  the  Oriental  mania  that  followed  had  made  very  fash- 
ionable. 


378  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

have  exhausted  itself.  After  the  divorce,  at  Malmaison,  she 
had  the  same  luxurious  tastes,  and  dressed  with  as  much  care, 
even  when  she  saw  no  one.  The  day  of  her  death  she  insisted 
on  being  dressed  in  a  very  elegant  robe  de  cfianibre^  because 
she  thought  that  the  Emperor  of  Russia  would  come  perhaps 
to  see  her.  She  died  covered  with  ribbons  and  pale  rose- 
colored  satin.  These  tastes  and  these  habits  on  her  part 
naturally  increased  the  expenses  of  those  about  her,  and  we 
found  it  difficult  at  times  to  appear  in  suitable  toilets.* 

Her  daughter  was  dressed  with  equal  richness — it  was 
the  tone  of  this  Court ;  but  she  had  order  and  economy,  and 
never  seemed  to  take  much  pleasure  in  dress.  Mine.  Murat 
and  the  Princess  Borghese  put  their  whole  souls  into  it. 
Their  court  dresses  cost  them  generally  from  ten  to  fifteen 
thousand  francs ;  and  they  supplemented  them  by  rare  pearls 
and  jewels  without  price. 

"With  all  this  extreme  luxury,  the  exquisite  taste  of  the 
Empress,  and  the  rich  costumes  of  the  men,  the  Court  was, 
as  may  readily  be  imagined,  most  brilliant.  It  may  even-  be 
said  that  on  certain  days  the  coup  cPceil  was  absolutely  daz- 
zling. Foreigners  were  much  struck  by  it.  It  was  during 
this  year  (1806)  that  the  Emperor  decided  to  give  occasional 
concerts  in  the  Hall  of  the  Marshals,  as  a  certain  large  hall, 
hung  with  portraits  of  the  Marshals,  was  called.  These  por- 
traits are  very  likely  there  now.  This  hall  was  lighted  by 
an  infinite  number  of  candles,  and  to  it  were  invited  all  those 
persons  who  had  any  connection  with  the  Government  and 
those  who  had  been  presented.  Thus  there  were  assembled 
usually  between  four  and  five  hundred  persons. 

After  haying  walked  through  the  saloons  where  all  these 
people  were  assembled,  Bonaparte  entered  the  hall  and  took 
his  place  at  the  end ;  the  Empress  on  his  left,  as  well  as  the 
Princesses  of  his  family,  in  the  most  dazzling  costumes ;  his 
mother  on  his  right — still  a  very  handsome  woman,  with  an 

*  Mmes.  Savary  and  Maret  expended  for  their  toilets  fifty  and  sixty  thousand 
francs  per  annum. 


HALL   OF  THE  MARSHALS.  379 

air  of  great  distinction.  His  brothers  were  richly  dressed, 
and  they  with  foreign  princes  and  other  dignitaries  were 
seated.  Behind  were  the  grand  officers,  the  chamberlains, 
and  all  the  staff,  in  their  embroidered  uniforms.  Upon  the 
right  and  the  left,  in  curved  lines,  sat  two  rows  of  ladies — the 
Lady  of  Honor,  the  Lady  in  Waiting,  and  the  Ladies  of  the 
Palace,  almost  all  of  them  young,  the  greater  number  of  them 
pretty  and  beautifully  dressed.*  Then  came  a  large  num- 
ber of  ladies — foreigners  and  Frenchwomen — whose  toilets 
were  exquisite  beyond  words.  Behind  these  two  rows  of 
seated  ladies  were  men  standing — ambassadors,  ministers, 
marshals,  senators,  generals,  and  so  on — all  in  the  most  gor- 
geous costumes.  Opposite  the  imperial  chairs  were  the  mu- 
sicians, and  as  soon  as  the  Emperor  was  seated  they  executed 
the  best  music,  which,  however,  in  spite  of  the  strict  silence 
that  was  enjoined  and  preserved,  fell  on  inattentive  ears. 
"When  the  concert  was  over,  in  the  center  of  the  room,  which 
had  been  kept  vacant,  appeared  the  best  dancers,  male  and 
female,  from  the  opera,  and  executed  a  charming  ballet.  This 
part  of  the  entertainment  of  the  evening  amused  every  one, 
even  the  Emperor. 

M.  de  Kemusat  had  all  these  arrangements  under  his 
charge,  and  it  was  no  petty  matter  either,  for  the  Emperor 
was  extremely  particular  and  exacting  in  regard  to  the  most 
trivial  details.  M.  de  Talleyrand  said  sometimes  to  my  hus- 
band, "  I  pity  you,  for  you  are  called  upon  to  amuse  the 
unamusable." 

The  concert  and  the  ballet  did  not  last  more  than  an  hour 
and  a  half.  Then  the  assembly  went  to  supper,  which  was 
laid  in  the  Gallery  of  Diana,  and  there  the  beauty  of  the 
gallery,  the  brilliancy  of  the  lights,  the  luxury  of  the  tables, 
the  display  of  silver  and  glass,  and  the  magnificence  and  ele- 

*  A  court  dress  cost  at  the  least  fifty  louis,  and  we  changed  them  very  often. 
As  a  general  thing  this  costume  was  embroidered  in  gold  or  silver,  and  trimmed 
with  mother-of-pearl.  Many  diamonds  were  worn,  in  sprays  and  scattered 
among  garlands  for  the  hair,  or  set  in  bands  for  the  neck  and  arms. 


380  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

gance  of  the  guests,  imparted  to  the  whole  scene  something 
of  the  air  of  a  fairy-tale.  There  was,  however,  something 
lacking.  I  will  not  say  that  it  was  the  ease  which  can  never 
be  found  in  a  court,  but  it  was  that  feeling  of  security  which 
each  person  might  have  brought  there  if  the  powers  that 
presided  had  added  a  little  more  kindliness  to  the  majesty 
by  which  they  surrounded  themselves. 

I  have  already  spoken  of  Mme.  Bonaparte's  family.  In 
the  first  years  of  her  elevation  she  had  brought  four  nephews 
and  a  niece  to  Paris  from  Martinique.  These  all  bore  the 
name  of  Tascher.  For  the  young  men  situations  were  found, 
and  the  young  lady  was  lodged  in  the  Tuileries.  She  was 
by  no  means  deficient  in  beauty,  but  the  change  of  climate 
affected  her  health,  and  rendered  impossible  all  the  plans 
which  the  Emperor  had  formed  for  a  brilliant  marriage  for 
her.  At  first  he  thought  of  marrying  her  to  the  Prince  of 
Baden  ;  then  for  some  time  he  destined  her  for  a  prince  of 
the  house  of  Spain.  At  last,  however,  she  was  married  to 
the  son  of  the  Duke  of  Arenberg,  who  was  of  a  Belgian  fam- 
ily. This  marriage,  so  much  desired  by  this  family,  who 
hoped  from  it  to  gain  great  advantages,  was  in  no  degree  a 
success.  The  husband  and  wife  never  suited  each  other,  and 
after  a  time  their  misunderstandings  and  incompatibilities 
culminated  in  a  separation  which  was  without  scandal.  After 
the  divorce  the  Arenbergs,  disappointed  in  their  ambitious 
hopes  and  plans,  openly  evinced  their  discontent  at  this  alli- 
ance, and  after  the  King's  return  the.  marriage  was  complete- 
ly broken.  Mme.  de lives  to-day  very  obscurely  in 

Paris. 

The  eldest  of  her  brothers,  after  residing  in  France  some 
two  or  three  years  without  being  in  the  least  dazzled  by  the 
honor  of  having  an  aunt  who  was  an  Empress,  began  to 
grow  very  weary  of  the  Court ;  and,  having  no  taste  for  mili- 
tary life,  he  yielded  to  his  homesickness,  and  asked  and  ob- 
tained permission  to  return  to  the  colonies.  He  took  some 
money  back  with  him,  and,  leading  a  calm  life  there,  has 


THE  EMPRESS'S  FAMILY.  381 

probably  more  than  once  congratulated  himself  on  this 
philosophical  departure.  Another  brother  was  attached  to 
Joseph  Bonaparte,  and  remained  in  Spain  in  his  military 
service.  He  married  Mile.  Clary,  daughter  of  a  merchant  at 
Marseilles,  and  niece  of  Mme.  Joseph  Bonaparte.*  A  third 
brother  married  the  daughter  of  the  Princess  of  Leyen.  He 
is  now  with  her  in  Germany.  The  fourth  brother  was  in- 
firm, and  lived  with  his  sister.  I  do  not  know  what  became 
of  him. 

The  Beauharnais  have  also  profited  by  the  elevation  of 
Mme.  Bonaparte,  and  continued  to  crowd  about  her.  I  have 
told  how  she  married  the  daughter  of  the  Marquis  de  Beau- 
harnais to  M.  de  la  Yalette.  The  Marquis  was  for  a  long 
time  Ambassador  to  Spain ;  he  is  in  France  to-day.  The 
Comte  de  Beauharnais,  the  son  of  the  lady  who  wrote  poetry 
and  novels,  f  had  married  early  in  life  Mile,  de  Lesay-Mar- 
nesia.  From  this  marriage  sprang  a  daughter,  who  resided 
after  her  mother's  death  with  an  old  aunt,  who  was  very 
religious.  The  Comte  de  Beauharnais,  marrying  again,  never 
seemed  to  think  of  this  young  girl.  Bonaparte  made  him 
Senator.  M.  de  Lesay-Marnesia,  uncle  to  the  young  Ste- 
phanie, suddenly  recalled  her  from  Languedoc  ;  she  was 
fourteen  or  fifteen.  He  presented  her  to  Mme.  Bonaparte, 
who  found  her  very  pretty  and  refined  in  all  her  little  ways. 
She  placed  her  in  Mme.  Campan's  boarding-school,  from 
which  she  emerged  in  1806  to  find  herself  suddenly  adopted 
by  the  Emperor,  called  Princess  Imperial,  and  married  short- 
ly after  to  the  hereditary  Prince  of  Baden.  She  was  then 
seventeen,  with  a  most  agreeable  face,  great  natural  clever- 
ness and  vivacity,  a  certain  childishness  in  her  manner  which 
suited  her  well,  a  charming  voice,  lovely  complexion,  and 
clear,  blue  eyes.  Her  hair  was  exquisitely  blonde. 

*  I  think  he  perished  in  the  campaign  of  1814. 

f  It  was  upon  her  that  the  poet  Lebrun  made  this  malicious  epigram : 
"  Egle,  fair  and  a  poet,  has  two  eccentricities : 
She  makes  her  face,  but  does  not  make  her  verses." 


382  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

The  Prince  of  Baden  was  not  long  in  falling  in  love  with 
her,  but  at  first  his  affection  was  not  returned.  He  was 
young,  but  very  stout ;  his  face  was  commonplace  and  inex- 
pressive ;  he  talked  little,  seemed  always  out  of  place  and 
bored,  and  generally  fell  asleep  wherever  he  might  be.  The 
youthful  Stephanie,  gay,  piquante,  dazzled  by  her  lot,  and 
proud  of  being  adopted  by  the  Emperor,  whom  she  then  re- 
garded with  some  reason  as  the  first  sovereign  in  the  world, 
gave  the  Prince  of  Baden  to  understand  that  he  was  greatly 
honored  by  her  bestowing  her  hand  upon  him.  In  vain  did 
they  seek  to 'correct  her  ideas  in  this  respect.  She  made  no 
objection  to  the  marriage,  and  was  quite  ready  to  consent  to 
its  taking  place  whenever  the  Emperor  wished  it ;  but  she 
persisted  in  saying  that  Napoleon's  daughter  should  marry  a 
king  or  the  son  of  a  king.  This  little  vanity,  accompanied 
by  many  piquante  jests,  to  which  her  seventeen  years  gave 
a  charm,  did  not  displease  the  Emperor,  and  in  fact  rather 
amused  him.  He  became  more  interested  than  before  in  his 
adopted  daughter,  and  precisely  at  the  time  he  married  her 
to  the  Prince  he  became,  with  considerable  publicity,  her 
lover.  This  conquest  finished  turning  the  head  of  the  new 
Princess,  and  confirmed  her  in  her  haughtiness  toward  her 
future  husband,  who  sought  in  vain  to  please  her.* 

*  This  is  the  decree,  issued  March  3,  1806,  by  which  the  Emperor  bestowed 
such  distinguished  rank  on  this  young  girl:  "Our  intention  being  that  the 
Princess  Stephanie  Napoleon,  our  daughter,  shall  enjoy  all  the  prerogatives  of 
her  rank,  we  hereby  state  that  at  the  table  and  at  all  fetes  she  shall  be  placed 
at  our  side,  and  on  those  occasions  when  we  ourselves  shall  be  absent  she  will 
be  placed  on  the  right  of  her  Majesty  the  Empress." 

The  next  day,  March  4th,  the  marriage  was  announced  to  the  Senate  in  these 
terms  :  "  Senators,  wishing  to  give  a  proof  of  the  affection  with  which  we  re- 
gard the  Princess  Beauharnais,  the  niece  of  our  well-beloved  spouse,  we  have 
affianced  her  to  Prince  Charles,  hereditary  Prince  of  Baden.  We  have  deemed 
it  wise,  under  these  circumstances,  to  adopt  the  said  Stephanie  Napoleon  as  our 
daughter.  This  union,  resulting  from  the  friendship  which  has  existed  for 
several  years  between  ourselves  and  the  Elector  of  Baden,  has  seemed  to  us  in 
especial  conformity  with  our  policy  and  productive  of  good  to  our  people.  Our 
departments  on  the  Rhine  will  welcome  with  pleasure  an  alliance  which  will  be 


JEALOUSY  OF  THE  EMPRESS.  383 

As  soon  as  the  Emperor  had  announced  to  the  Senate  the 
news  of  this  marriage,  the  youthful  Stephanie  was  installed 
in  the  Tuileries,  in  an  apartment  especially  arranged  for  her, 
and  there  she  received  the  deputations  from  the  govern- 
mental bodied.  Of  that  from  the  Senate  her  father  was  one. 
Her  situation  was  certainly  a  little  odd,  but  she  received  all 
the  addresses  and  felicitations  without  any  embarrassment, 
and  replied  extremely  well.  Having  become  the  daughter 
of  the  sovereign,  and  being  a  favorite  in  addition,  the  Em- 
peror ordered  that  she  should  everywhere  follow  next  to  the 
Empress,  thus  taking  precedence  of  the  whole  Bonaparte 
family.  Mme.  Murat  was  extremely  displeased,  who  hated 
her  with  a  cordial  hatred,  and  could  not  conceal  her  pride 
and  jealousy.  Mademoiselle  thought  this  very  amusing, 
and  laughed  at  it  as  she  did  at  everything  else,  and  succeeded 
in  making  the  Emperor  laugh  also,  as  he  was  inclined  to  be 
amused  at  all  she  said.  The  Empress  was  much  displeased 
at  this  new  fancy  of  her  husband's.  She  spoke  seriously  to 
her  niece,  and  showed  her  how  wrong  it  would  be  for  her 
not  to  resist  the  efforts  which  Bonaparte  was  making  to 
complete  her  seduction.  Mile,  de  Beauharnais  listened  to 
her  aunt's  counsels  with  some  docility.  She  confided  to  her 
certain  attempts,  sometimes  extremely  bold,  made  by  her 
adopted  father,  and  promised  to  conduct  herself  with  caution 
and  reserve.  These  confidences  renewed  all  the  former  dis- 
cord of  the  Imperial  household.  Bonaparte,  unchanged,  did 
not  take  the  trouble  to  conceal  his  inclination  from  his  wife, 
and,  too  sure  of  his  power,  thought  it  extremely  unhandsome 
in  the  Prince  of  Baden  that  he  should  be  wounded  by  what 
was  going  on  under  his  very  eyes.  Nevertheless,  the  fear  of 

to  them  a  new  motive  for  cultivating  their  commercial  and  neighborly  relations 
with  the  subjects  of  the  Elector.  The  distinguished  qualities  of  Prince  Charles 
of  Baden  and  the  particular  affection  that  he  has  shown  us  under  all  circum 
stances  are  to  us  a  sure  guarantee  for  the  happiness  of  our  daughter.  Accus 
tomed  to  share  with  you  all  that  interests  us,  we  determined  to  no  longer  delay 
bringing  to  your  knowledge  an  alliance  that  is  so  agreeable  to  ourselves." 

RR.. 


384  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

an  outburst  and  the  number  of  eyes  fixed  upon  all  the  per- 
sons concerned  rendered  him  prudent.  On  the  other  side, 
the  young  girl,  who  only  wished  to  amuse  herself,  showed 
more  resistance  than  he  had  at  first  anticipated.  But  she  hated 
her  husband.  The  evening  of  her  marriage  it  was  impossible 
to  persuade  her  to  receive  him  in  her  apartment.  A  little 
later  the  Court  went  to  Saint  Cloud,  and  with  it  the  young 
pair.  Nothing,  however,  could  induce  the  Princess  to  per- 
mit her  husband  to  approach  her.  He  complained  to  the 
Empress,  who  scolded  her  niece.  The  Emperor,  however, 
upheld  her,  and  his  own  hopes  revived.  All  this  had  a  very 
bad  effect,  which  at  last  the  Emperor  realized ;  and  at  the 
end  of  some  little  time — occupied  with  grave  affairs,  fatigued 
by  the  importunity  of  his  wife,  struck  by  the  discontent  of  the 
young  Prince,  and  persuaded  that  he  had  to  do  with  a  young 
person  who  only  wished  to  amuse  herself  by  coquetting  with 
him — he  consented  to  the  departure  of  the  Prince  of  Baden, 
who  took  his  wife  away  with  him.  She  shed  many  tears  at 
leaving  France,  regarding  the  principality  of  Baden  as  a  land 
of  exile.  When  she  arrived  there  she  was  received  somewhat 
coldly  by  the  reigning  Prince.  She  lived  for  a  long  time 
on  bad  terms  with  her  husband.  Secret  negotiators  were 
sent  from  France  to  make  her  understand  how  important  it 
was  to  her  that  she  should  become  the  mother  of  a  Prince — 
an  hereditary  Prince  in  his  turn.  She  submitted ;  but  the 
Prince,  rendered  frigid  by  so  much  resistance,  now  showed 
very  little  tenderness  toward  her,  and  this  marriage  seemed 
destined  to  make  them  both  very  unhappy.  It  was  not 
eventually  so,  however ;  and  we  shall  see  later  that  the  Prin- 
cess of  Baden,  having  acquired  a  little  more  sense  with  years, 
began  at  last  to  recognize  her  duty,  and  by  her  good  conduct 
succeeded  finally  in  regaining  the  affection  of  the  Prince, 
and  enjoyed  the  advantages  of  a  union  which  she  at  first  had 
so  entirely  under-estimated.* 

I  have 'not  as  yet  mentioned  the  fact  that  among  the 

*  The  Prince  of  Baden  is  brother  to  the  Empress  of  Russia. 


THE ATEI  GALS  AT  MALMAISON.  335 

amusements  of  this  Court  was  an  occasional  theatrical  rep- 
resentation— a  comedy  played  at  Malmaison — which  was  no 
uncommon  thing  during  the  first  year  of  the  Consulate. 
Prince  Eugene  and  his  sister  had  real  talent  in  this  direction, 
and  found  great  amusement  in  exercising  it.  At  this  time 
Bonaparte  too  was  greatly  interested  in  these  representations, 
which  were  given  before  a  limited  audience.  A  pretty  hall 
was  built  at  Malmaison,  and  we  played  there  very  often.  But 
by  degrees  the  rank  of  the  family  became  too  exalted  for 
this  kind  of  pleasure,  and  finally  it  was  permitted  only  on 
certain  occasions,  like  that  of  the  birthday  of  the  Empress. 
When  the  Emperor  came  back  from  Vienna,  Mme.  Louis 
Bonaparte  took  it  into  her  head  to  have  an  appropriate  little 
vaudeville  arranged  in  which  we  all  played,  and  each  sang  a 
verse.  A  number  of  persons  had  been  invited,  and  Malmai- 
son was  illuminated  in  a  charming  manner.  It  was  some- 
what of  a  trying  ordeal  to  appear  on  the  stage  before  an 
audience  like  this,  but  the  Emperor  showed  himself  particu- 
larly well  disposed.  We  played  well.  Mme.  Louis  had,  and 
was  entitled  to  have,  a  great  triumph.  The  verses  were 
pretty,  the  flattery  delicate,  and  the  evening  a  complete  suc- 
cess.* It  was  really  curious  to  observe  the  tone  in  which  each 

*  This  representation  may  have  been  given  a  trifle  later  than  the  date  I  have 
stated.  At  all  events,  when  Barre,  Radet,  and  Desfontaines,  the  great  vaude- 
villists  of  that  time,  presented  to  the  public  of  Paris  this  same  piece,  they  called 
it  "  La  Colonne  de  Rosbach."  They  seemed  to  have  written  it  in  honor  of  the 
Jena  campaign.  It  is  true  that  the  authors  could  without  any  trouble  have 
changed  the  scene  from  the  war  of  1805  to  the  Prussian  campaign;  but  neither 
the  courtiers  nor  the  playwrights  concerned  themselves  upon  this  point.  It  is, 
however,  quite  certain  that  the  role  of  the  old  Alsatian  woman  is  much  as  my 
grandmother  related  it.  The  princesses  were  her  daughters  or  her  nieces.  This 
Alsatian  showed  the  greatest  enthusiasm  for  the  Emperor,  and  sang  this  stanza, 
which  my  father's  wonderful  memory  permitted  him  to  retain,  and  which  I  learned 
from  him : 

Air:  "  J'ai  vu  partout  dan  mes  voyages." 

"  All  through  the  day  my  thoughts  are  of  the  glorious  feats  of  my  hero : 
All  through  the  night  my  dreams  repeat  my  thoughts. 


386  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

said  in  the  evening,  "  The  Emperor  laughed,  the  Emperor 
applauded!"  and  how  we  congratulated  each  other.  I 
particularly,  who  accosted  him  always  with  a  certain  reserve, 
found  myself  all  at  once  in  a  better  position  toward  him,  in 
consequence  of  the  manner  in  which  I  had  fulfilled  the 
part  of  an  old  peasant-woman  who  dreamed  continually  that 
her  hero  did  the  most  incredible  things,  and  who  saw  events 
surpass  her  wildest  dreams.  After  the  play  was  over,  he 
paid  me  a  few  compliments.  We  had  played  with  our 
whole  hearts,  and  he  seemed  somewhat  touched.  "When  I 
saw  him  in  this  mood  thus  suddenly  and  unexpectedly 
moved  by  emotion,  I  was  tempted  to  exclaim,  "  Why  will 
you  not  allow  yourself  occasionally  to  feel  and  think  like 
other  men  ? "  I  felt  a  sensation  of  intense  relief  on  these 
rare  occasions,  for  it  seemed  to  me  that  hope  once  more 
revived  within  me.  Ah !  how  easily  the  great  master  us, 
and  how  little  trouble  they  need  take  to  make  themselves 
beloved !  Perhaps  this  last  reflection  has  already  escaped 
me,  but  I  have  made  it  so  often  during  the  last  twelve  years 
of  my  life,  and  it  presses  so  heavily  upon  me  whenever  I  look 
back  upon  the  past,  that  it  is  by  no  means  extraordinary 
that  I  should  express  it  more  than  once. 

Dreams,  I  am  told,  are  but  follies  and  fables ; 

But  when  they  are  of  him,  however  wild  and  improbable  they  may  seem, 

They  are  always  accomplished." 

In  the  memoirs  of  Bourrienne  some  details  may  be  found  of  these  repre- 
sentations at  Malmaison.  These  vaudevilles  were  much  the  fashion  at  this 
Court ;  they  were  all  the  literature  known  to  many  of  the  persons  of  that 
time.— P.  R. 


CHAPTEE  XIX. 

The  Emperor's  Court— His  Ecclesiastical  Household— His  Military  Household 
—The  Marshals— The  Ladies— Delille— Chateaubriand— Mme.  de  Genlis— 
Eomances — Literature — Arts. 

BEFOEE  resuming  the  succession  of  events,  I  have  a  strong 
desire  to  dwell  a  little  on  the  names  of  those  persons  who 
at  this  time  composed  the  Court,  and  who  occupied  a  distin- 
guished position  in  the  Government.  I  shall  not  be  able, 
however,  to  draw  a  series  of  portraits  which  can  vary  enough, 
one  from  the  other,  to  be  piquant.  We  know  very  well 
that  despotism  is  the  greatest  of  levelers.  It  regulates  the 
thoughts,  it  determines  both  actions  and  words;  and  the 
regulations  to  which  all  submit  are  often  so  strictly  observed 
that  the  exteriors  are  assimilated,  and  perhaps  even  some  of 
the  impressions  received. 

I  remember  that  during  the  winter  of  1814:  the  Empress 
Maria  Louisa  received  a  large  number  of  persons  every  even- 
ing. They  came  to  obtain  news  of  the  army,  in  whose  move- 
ments and  plans  every  one  was  deeply  interested.  At  the 
moment  when  the  Emperor,  in  his  pursuit  of  the  Prussian 
General  Bliicher,  left  to  the  Austrian  army  leisure  to  ad- 
vance as  far  as  Fontainebleau,  Paris  believed  itself  about  to 
fall  into  the  power  of  strangers.  Many  persons  met  in  the 
saloons  of  the  Empress  and  questioned  each  other  with  great 
anxiety.  Toward  the  end  of  this  evening  M.  de  Talleyrand 
came  to  call  on  me  after  leaving  the  Tuileries.  He  told  me 
of  the  anxiety  which  he  had  witnessed,  and  then  said: 
"  What  a  man,  madame,  this  must  be,  who  can  cause  the 


388  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

Comte  de  Montesquieu  and  the  Councilor  of  State  Boulay 
(de  la  Meurthe)*  to  experience  the  same  anxiety,  and  to 
evince  it  in  the  same  words ! "  He  had  found  these  two 
persons  with  the  Empress.  They  had  both  struck  him  by 
their  pallor,  and  both  expressed  their  dread  of  the  events 
which  they  began  to  foresee  in  the  future.f 

With  few  exceptions — either  because  chance  did  not 
gather  around  the  Emperor  persons  of  any  marked  individ- 
uality, or  because  of  the  uniformity  of  conduct  of  which  I 
have  just  spoken — I  can  not  recall  many  purely  personal 
peculiarities  which  deserve  to  be  commemorated.  Setting 

*  The  Comte  de  Montesquieu  was  then  Grand  Chamberlain.  Boulay  (de  la 
Meurthe)  had  been  a  member  of  the  Left  of  the  Five  Hundred,  and  had  drawn 
up  the  famous  law  of  the  suspects. 

f  My  father,  in  the  last  days  of  his  life,  reading  these  Memoirs  and  deciding 
to  publish  them,  wrote,  dpropos  of  this  conversation,  the  following  note:  "The 
observation  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  made  at  a  soiree  where  I  was  or  had  been 
present.  I  did  not  hear  the  remark,  but  I  remember  that  my  mother  repeated 
it  to  us.  It  was  even  more  distinctly  stated  than  she  has  given  it.  One  even- 
ing in  the  first  two  months  of  1814,  or  rather  in  the  last  months  of  1813,  one 
day  when  I  was  on  leave,  I  went  to  the  theatre  in  the  evening,  and  on  coming 
back  found  in  my  mother's  small  salon,  in  the  entresol  of  No.  6  Place  Louis 
XV.,  my  father,  M.  Pasquier,  and  M.  de  Talleyrand.  The  latter  was  speaking, 
and  describing — having  the  breathless  attention  of  his  listeners— the  situation 
of  public  affairs,  which  was  deplorable  enough.  He  did  not  cease  speaking  as 
I  entered.  They  signed  to  me,  however,  not  to  withdraw,  and  I  too  listened 
with  eager  interest.  M.  de  Talleyrand  this  time  spoke  with  earnest  force  and 
simplicity ;  he  passed  in  review  all  the  powers  and  the  men  of  the  moment,  in- 
sisting that  things  were  in  a  desperate  position,  but  attributing  this  position 
less  to  the  situation  itself  than  to  the  character  of  the  Emperor  and  to  the  dis- 
position of  the  people  by  whom  he  was  surrounded.  M.  de  Talleyrand  insisted 
that  common  sense,  courage,  and  ability  were  lacking  on  all  sides,  or  were  not 
united  in  any  one  person  in  a  degree  sufficient  to  hold  back  the  Empire  and  its 
master  on  the  downward  slope  that  led  to  their  ruin.  It  was  one  of  those  rare 
occasions  when  I  saw  M.  de  Talleyrand  at  his  best — a  thing  which  never  hap- 
pened to  me  more  than  two  or  three  times  in  my  life.  This  was  the  first  time 
that  I  had  ever  heard  him  talk  politics.  This  conversation  was,  I  think,  in- 
tended more  especially  for  M.  Pasquier,  who  listened  with  more  deference  than 
assent.  It  seemed  to  me  that  he  was  not  altogether  pleased,  either  because  he 
recognized  with  regret  the  truth  of  what  was  said,  or  because  he  was  unwilling 
to  receive  such  confidences." — P.  B. 


THE  EMPEROR'S  COURT.  339 

the  principal  figures  aside,  as  well  as  the  events  which  I 
propose  to  relate,  I  have  but  the  names  of  the  others  to  re- 
count, the  costumes  which  they  wore,  and  the  duties  with 
which  they  were  intrusted.  It  is  a  hard  thing  for  men  to 
feel  that  the  sovereign  to  whom  they  are  attached  has  a 
thorough  and  universal  contempt  for  human  nature.  Such 
a  consciousness  saddens  the  spirits,  discourages  the  soul, 
and  compels  each  man  to  confine  himself  to  the  purely 
material  duties  of  his  position,  which  he  ends  by  regard- 
ing as  mere  business.  Each  one  of  these  men  who  com- 
posed the  Court  and  the  Government  of  the  Emperor  had 
undoubtedly  a  mind  of  his  own,  and  especial  feelings  and 
opinions.  Some  among  them  silently  practiced  certain  vir- 
tues, others  concealed  their  faults  and  even  their  vices.  But 
both  appeared  oh  the  surface  only  at  the  word  of  command, 
and,  unfortunately  for  the  men  of  that  time,  Bonaparte  be- 
lieved that  more  was  to  be  made  out  of  the  bad  side  of  hu- 
man nature  than  from  the  good,  and  therefore  looked  for 
vices  rather  than  for  virtues.  He  liked  to  discover  weak- 
nesses, and  profited  by  them ;  and,  where  there  were  no  vices, 
he  encouraged  these  weaknesses,  or,  if  he  could  do  no  better, 
he  worked  on  their  fears — anything  to  prove  himself  always 
and  constantly  the  strongest.  Thus  he  was  by  no  means  i]l 
pleased  that  Cambaceres,  though  possessing  estimable  and  dis- 
tinguished qualities,  allowed  his  foolish  pride  to  be  seen,  and 
gave  himself  the  reputation  of  a  certain  license  of  morals 
and  habits  which  counterbalanced  "the  just  admiration  ren- 
dered to  his  cultivation  and  to  his  natural  probity.  Nor  did 
the  Emperor  ever  deplore  the  indolent  immorality  of  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  his  careless  indifference,  nor  the  small  value  he 
placed  on  the  esteem  of  the  public.  He  was  infinitely  amused 
by  what  he  saw  fit  to  call  the  silliness  of  the  Prince  de  Neu- 
chatel,  and  the  servile  flattery  of  M.  Maret. 

He  took  advantage  of  the  avarice  which  he  himself  had 
developed  in  Savary,  and  of  the  callousness  of  Duroc's 
disposition.  He  never  shrank  from  the  remembrance  that 


390         MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

Fouche  had  once  been  a  Jacobin;  indeed,  lie  said  with  a 
smile :  "  The  only  difference  is  that  he  is  now  a  rich  Jacobin ; 
but  that's  all  I  want." 

His  Ministers  he  regarded  and  treated  as  more  or  less 
efficient  clerks,  and  he  used  to  say,  "  I  should  not  know  what 
to  do  with  them  if  they  were  not  men  of  mere  ordinary  abili- 
ties and  character." 

If  any  one  had  been  conscious  of  real  superiority  of  any 
kind,  he  must  needs  have  endeavored  to  hide  it ;  and  it  is 
probable  that,  warned  by  an  instinctive  sense  of  danger, 
everybody  affected  dullness  or  vacuity  when  those  qualities 
were' not  real. 

Memoirs  of  this  period  will  suffer  from  this  remarkable 
feature  of  it,  which  will  give  rise  to  a  plausible,  though  un- 
merited, accusation  against  the  writers  of  being  malevolent 
in  their  views,  partial  toward  themselves,  and  extremely  se- 
vere toward  others.  Each  writer  will  in  reality  be  able  to 
tell  his  own  secret  only,  but  will  have  been  unable  to  pene- 
trate that  of  his  neighbor. 

Ecclesiastical  influence  in  the  Emperor's  household  was 
insignificant.  Mass  was  celebrated  in  his  presence  every 
Sunday,  and  that  was  all.  I  have  already  spoken  of  Cardi- 
nal Fesch.  In  1807  M.  de  Pradt,  Bishop  of  Poitiers,  and 
subsequently  Archbishop  of  Mechlin,  made  his  appearance 
at  Court.  He  was  clever  and  scheming,  verbose  but  amus- 
ing, and  fond  of  gossip ;  he  held  liberal  opinions,  but  he 
expressed  them  in  cynical  language.  He  attempted  many 
things  without  perfectly  succeeding  in  any  one  of  them.  He 
could,  indeed,  talk  over  the  Emperor  himself,  and  he  may 
perhaps  have  given  him  good  advice  ;  but,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed to  put  his  own  counsels  into  action,  nothing  came  of 
the  attempt,  for  he  possessed  neither  the  confidence  nor  the 
esteem  of  the  public. 

The  Abbe  de  Broglie,  Bishop  of  Ghent,  was  cunning, 
but  also  imprudent ;  he  obtained  at  a  cheap  rate  the  honor 
of  persecution. 


HIS  MILITARY  HOUSEHOLD.  391 

The  Abbe  de  Boulogne,  Bishop  of  Troyes,  proved  him- 
self in  those  days  as  eager  to  extol  despotism  as  he  now  is  to 
emerge  from  the  obscurity  to  which  he  has  happily  been 
reduced  by  the  constitutional  government  of  the  King.* 

Bonaparte  made  use  of  the  clergy,  but  he  disliked  priests. 
He  had  both  philosophical  and  revolutionary  prejudices 
against  them.  I  do  not  know  whether  he  was  a  deist  or  an 
atheist,  but  he  habitually  ridiculed  everything  connected 
with  religion  in  familiar  conversation ;  and,  besides,  he  was 
taken  up  too  much  with  the  affairs  of  this  world  to  concern 
himself  with  the  next.  I  may  venture  to  say,  that  the  im- 
mortality of  his  name  was  to  him  of  much  greater  impor- 
tance than  that  of  his  soul.  He  had  an  antipathy  to  pious 
persons,  and  invariably  accused  them  of  hypocrisy.  When 
the  priesthood  in  Spain  stirred  up  the  people  against  him, 
when  he  met  with  opposition  from  the  French  Bishops  which 
did  them  honor,  when  the  Pope's  cause  was  embraced  by 
great  numbers,  he  was  quite  confounded,  and  said  more  than 
once,  "  I  thought  men  were  more  advanced  than  they  really 
are." 

The  military  household  of  the  Emperor  was  numerous, 
but,  except  in  times  of  war,  its  members  had  to  discharge 
duties  of  a  civil  nature.  Dreading  the  recollections  of  the 
field  of  battle,  he  distributed  the  various  functions  on  another 
footing  at  the  palace  of  the  Tuileries.  He  made  chamber- 
lains of  the  generals,  and  subsequently  he  obliged  them  to 
wear  embroidered  uniforms,  and  to  exchange  their  swords 
for  court  rapiers.  This  transformation  was  displeasing  to 
many  of  them,  but  they  had  to  submit,  and,  having  been 
wolves,  to  become  shepherds.  There  was,  however,  a  good 
reason  for  this.  A  display  of  military  renown  would,  to  a 
certain  extent,  have  eclipsed  other  classes  whom  it  was  neces- 
sary to  conciliate ;  military  manners  were  by  this  expedient 
refined  perforce,  and  certain  recalcitrant  marshals  lost  some 
of  their  prestige  while  acquiring  the  polish  of  court  man- 

*  I  have  already  made  sufficient  mention  of  Cardinal  Maury. 


392  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  ItfiMUSAT. 

ners.  They  became,  indeed,  slightly  ridiculous  by  this  ap- 
prenticeship— a  fact  which  Bonaparte  knew  how  to  turn  to 
advantage. 

I  believe  I  may  confidently  state  that  the  Emperor  did 
not  like  any  of  his  marshals.  He  frequently  found  fault  with 
them,  sometimes  in  very  serious  respects.  He  accused  them 
all  of  covetousness,  which  he  deliberately  encouraged  by  his 
gifts.  One  day  he  passed  them  all  in  review  before  me.  On 
Davoust  he  pronounced  the  verdict  which  I  think  I  have 
already  mentioned  :  "  Davoust  is  a  man  on  whom  I  may  be- 
stow glory ;  he  will  never  know  how  to  wear  it."  Of  Mar- 
shal Key  he  said  :  "  He  is  ungrateful  and  factious.  If  I  were 
destined  to  die  by  the  hand  of  a  marshal,  I  would  lay  a  wager 
that  hand  would  be  his."  I  recollect  that  he  said  he  regarded 
Moncey,  Brune,  Bessieres,  Victor,  and  Oudinot  as  men  of 
middling  abilities,  who  would  never  be  more  than  titled  sol- 
diers. Massena  he  looked  upon  as  effete,  but  it  was  evident 
he  had  formerly  been  jealous  of  him.  Soult  sometimes  gave 
him  trouble ;  he  was  clever,  rough,  and  vain,  and  he  would 
argue  with  his  master  and  dispute  his  conditions.  Bonaparte 
could  rule  Augereau,  who  was  rather  unpolished  in  manner 
than  obstinate.  He  was  aware  of  Marmont's  vanity,  which 
he  might  wound  with  impunity,  and  of  Macdonald's  habitual 
ill  humor.  Lannes  had  been  his  comrade,  and  the  Marshal 
would  sometimes  remind  him  of  this :  on  such  occasions  he 
would  be  gently  called  to  order.  Bernadotte  had  more  spirit 
than  the  others ;  he  was  continually  complaining,  and,  indeed, 
he  often  had  cause  for  complaint. 

The  way  in  which  the  Emperor  curbed,  rewarded,  or 
snubbed  with  impunity  men  so  proud  and  puffed  up  with 
military  fame  was  very  remarkable.  Other  writers  can  relate 
with  what  wonderful  skill  he  made  use  of  these  men  in  war, 
and  how  he  won  fresh  glory  for  himself  by  utilizing  their 
fame,  ever  showing  himself,  in  very  truth,  superior  to  all 
others. 

I  need  not  give  the  names  of  the  chamberlains ;  the  Im- 


THE  LADIES.  393 

perial  Almanac  supplies  them.  By  degrees  their  number 
became  considerable.  They  were  taken  from  all  ranks  and 
classes.  Those  who  were  most  assiduous  and  least  talkative 
got  on  best ;  their  duties  were  troublesome  and  very  tedious. 
In  proportion  as  one's  place  was  nearer  to  the  Emperor,  one's 
life  became  more  burdensome.  Persons  who  have  had  none 
but  business  relations  with  him  can  have  no  adequate  idea  of 
the  unpleasantness  of  any  that  were  closer ;  it  w,as  always 
easier  to  deal  with  his  intellect  than  with  his  temper. 

Nor  shall  I  have  much  to  relate  concerning  the  ladies  of 
the  period.  Bonaparte  frequently  said :  "  Women  shall  have 
no  influence  at  my  Court ;  they  may  dislike  me,  but  I  shall 
have  peace  and  quietness."  He  kept  his  word.  We  were 
ornamental  at  the  fetes,  and  that  was  about  all.  Neverthe- 
less, as  it  is  the  privilege  of  beauty  never  to  be  forgotten, 
some  of  the  ladies-in-waiting  deserve  a  passing  notice  here. 
In  Mme.  de  Mottevelle's  Memoirs,  she  pauses  to  describe  the 
beauties  of  her  time,  and  I  must  not  pass  over  in  silence 
those  of  our  own. 

At  the  head  of  the  Empress's  household  was  Mme.  de  la 
Eochefoucauld.  She  was  short  and  deformed,  not  pretty, 
yet  her  face  was  not  unattractive.  Her  large  blue  eyes,  with 
black  eyebrows,  had  a  fine  effect ;  she  was  lively,  fearless, 
and  a  clever  talker ;  a  little  satirical,  but  kind-hearted,  and 
of  a  gay  and  independent  spirit.  She  neither  liked  nor  dis- 
liked any  one  at  Court,  lived  on  good  terms  with  all,  and 
looked  at  nothing  very  seriously.  She  considered  she  had 
done  Bonaparte  an  honor  by  coming  to  his  Court,  and  by 
dint  of  saying  so  she  persuaded  others  of  it,  so  that  she  was 
treated  with  consideration.  She  employed  herself  princi- 
pally in  repairing  her  shattered  fortunes,  obtaining  several 
ambassadorships  for  her  husband,  and  giving  her  daughter  in 
marriage  to  the  younger  son  of  the  princely  house  of  Bor- 
ghese.  The  Emperor  thought  her  wanting  in  dignity,  and 
he  was  right ;  but  he  was  always  embarrassed  in  her  com- 
pany, for  he  had  no  idea  of  the  deference  due  to  a  woman, 


394:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

and  she  would  answer  him  sharply.  The  Empress,  too,  was 
rather  afraid  of  her,  for  in  her  easy  manner  there  was  no 
little  imperiousness.  She  remained  faithful  to  old  friends 
who  held  opposite  opinions  to  her  own,  or  rather  to  what  we 
may  suppose  to  have  been  her  own,  judging  by  the  post  she 
occupied  at  Court.  She  was  daughter-in-law  to  the  Due  de 
Liancourt,  and  she  left  the  Court  when  the  divorce  took 
place.  Ste  died  in  Paris,  under  the  Restoration. 

Mme.  de  la  Yalette,  the  Mistress  of  the  Robes,  was 
daughter  to  the  Marquis  de  Beauharnais.  Her  complexion 
had  been  slightly  spoiled  by  small-pox,  but  she  had  a  pleasing 
though  expressionless  face.  Her  gentleness  almost  amounted 
to  inanity,  and  small  vanities  chiefly  occupied  her  thoughts. 
Her  mind  was  narrow,  her  conduct  was  correct.  Her  post 
was  a  complete  sinecure,  for  Mme.  Bonaparte  allowed  no  one 
to  interfere  with  her  dress.  In  vain  did  the  Emperor  insist 
that  Mme.  de  la  Yalette  should  make  up  accounts,  regulate 
expenditure,  and  superintend  purchases ;  he  was  obliged  to 
yield,  and  to  give  up  the  idea  of  maintaining  any  order  on 
these  points,  for  Mme.  de  la  Yalette  was  incapable  of  defend- 
ing the  rights  of  her  place  in  opposition  to  her  aunt.  She 
confined  herself,  therefore,  to  taking  Mme.  de  la  Rochefou 
cauld's  duties  when  the  latter  absented  herself  on  account  of 
illness.  Everybody  knows  what  courage  and  energy  misfor- 
tune and  conjugal  love  subsequently  developed  in  this  young 
lady. 

Chief  among  the  Ladies  of  the  Palace  was  Mme.  de  Lu- 
cay,  who  had  held  that  position  longest.  In  1806  she  was  no 
longer  young.  She  was  a  gentle  and  quiet  person.  Her 
husband  was  Prefect  of  the  Palace ;  their  daughter  married 
the  younger  son  of  the  Count  de  Segur,  and  has  since  died. 

I  come  next  on  the  list,  and  I  feel  inclined  to  make  a  lit- 
tle sketch  of  my  myself  ;  I  believe  I  can  do  this  truthfully. 
I  was  twenty-three  when  I  first  came  to  Court ;  I  was  not 
pretty,  yet  not  altogether  devoid  of  attraction,  and  I  looked 
well  in  full  dress.  My  eyes  were  fine,  my  hair  was  black, 


SKETCH  OF  MYSELF.        ,  395 

and  I  had  good  teeth ;  my  nose  and  face  were  too  large  in 
proportion  to  my  figure,  which  was  good,  but  small.  I  had 
the  reputation  of  being  a  clever  woman,  which  was  almost  a 
reproach  at  Court.  In  point  of  fact,  I  lack  neither  wit  nor 
sense,  but  my  warmth  of  feeling  and  of  thought  leads  me  to 
speak  and  act  impulsively,  and  makes  me  commit  errors 
which  a  cooler,  even  though  less  wise,  person  would  avoid. 

I  was  often  misinterpreted  at  Bonaparte's  Court.  I  was 
lively,  and  was  supposed  to  be  scheming.  I  liked  to  be  ac- 
quainted with  persons  of  importance,  and  I  was  accused  of 
being  ambitious.  I  am  too  much  devoted  to  persons  and  to 
causes  which  appear  to  me  to  have  right  on  their  side,  to 
deserve  the  first  accusation  ;  and  my  faithfulness  to  friends 
in  misfortune  is  a  sufficient  answer  to  the  second.  Mme. 
Bonaparte  trusted  me  more  than  others,  and  thereby  put  me 
into  a  difficult  position  ;  people  soon  perceived  this,  and  no 
one  envied  me  the  onerous  distinction  of  her  friendship. 
The  preference  which  the  Emperor  at  first  showed  me  was  a 
cause  of  greater  jealousy.  I  reaped  little  benefit  from  his 
favor,  but  I  was  flattered  by  it  and  grateful  for  it ;  and,  so  long 
as  I  felt  a  regard  for  him,  I  sought  to  please  him.  When 
my  eyes  were  opened,  I  drew  back ;  dissimulation  is  abso- 
lutely opposed  to  my  character.  I  came  to  Court  too  full  of 
inquisitiveness.  It  seemed  to  me  so  curious  a  scene  that  I 
watched  it  closely,  and  asked  many  questions  that  I  might 
fully  understand  it.  It  was  often  thought  that  I  did  this 
from  design.  In  palaces  no  action  is  supposed  to  be  without 
a  motive  ;  "  Cui  bono  f  "  is  said  on  every  occasion.* 

My  impetuosity  frequently  brought  me  into  trouble.  E"ot 
that  I  acted  altogether  on  impulse,  but  I  was  very  young,  very 
unaffected,  because  I  had  always  been  very  happy ;  in  nothing 
was  I  sufficiently  sedate,  and  my  qualities  sometimes  did  me 
as  much  harm  as  my  defects.  But,  amid  all  this,  I  have  met 

*  I  knew  a  man  who  always  asked  himself  this  question  with  great  gravity, 
before  deciding  on  the  visits  he  should  pay  each  evening. 


396  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

with  friends  who  loved  me,  and  of  whom,  no  matter  how  I 
may  be  circumstanced,  I  shall  retain  a  loving  recollection. 

I  soon  began  to  suffer  from  disappointed  hopes,  betrayed 
affections,  and  mistaken  beliefs.  Moreover,  my  health  failed, 
and  I  became  tired  of  so  arduous  a  life,  and  disenchanted 
both  with  men  and  things.  I  withdrew  myself  as  far  as 
possible,  and  found  in  my  own  home  feelings  and  enjoy- 
ments that  could  not  deceive.  I  loved  my  husband,  my 
mother,  my  children,  and  my  friends ;  I  should  have  been 
unwilling  to  give  up  the  peaceful  pleasure  I  found  in  their 
society.  I  contrived  to  retain  a  kind  of  liberty  amid  the 
numerous  trivial  duties  of  my  post.  Lastly,  when  I  ap- 
proved of  any  one  and  when  I  ceased  to  do  so,  both  states  of 
mind  too  plainly  showed.  There  could  be  no  greater  fault 
in  the  eyes  of  Bonaparte.  He  dreaded  nothing  in  the  world 
so  much  as  that  any  one  in  his  circle  should  use  their  critical 
faculty  with  regard  to  him. 

Mme.  de  Canisy,  a  great-niece  of  M.  de  Brienne,  the 
former  Archbishop  of  Sens,  was  a  beautiful  woman  when 
first  she  came  to  Court.  She  was  tall  and  well  made,  with 
eyes  and  hair  of  raven-black,  lovely  teeth,  an  aquiline  nose, 
and  a  rich  brunette  complexion. 

Mme.  Maret  was  a  fine  woman ;  her  features  were  regu- 
lar and  handsome.  She  seemed  to  live  on  excellent  terms 
with  her  husband,  who  imparted  to  her  some  of  his  own 
ambition.  Seldom  have  I  seen  more  unconcealed  or  more 
solicitous  vanity  in  any  one.  She  was  jealous  of  every  dis- 
tinction, and  tolerated  superior  rank  in  the  Princesses  only. 
Born  in  obscurity,  she  aimed  at  the  highest  distinctions. 
"When  the  Emperor  granted  the  title  of  countess  to  all  the 
ladies-in-waiting,  Mme.  Maret  felt  annoyed  at  the  equality  it 
implied,  and,  obstinately  refusing  to  bear  it,  she  remained 
plain  Mme.  Maret  until  her  husband  obtained  the  title  of 
Due  de  Bassano.  Mme.  Savary  and  she  were  the  most  ele- 
gantly dressed  women  at  Court.  Their  dress  is  said  to  have 
cost  more  than  fifty  thousand  francs  a  year.  Mme.  Maret 


MME.  NARET.  397 

thought  that  the  Empress  did  not  sufficiently  distinguish  her 
from  the  others ;  she  therefore  made  common  cause  with  the 
Bonapartes  against  her.  She  was  feared  and  distrusted  with 
some  reason,  for  she  repeated  things  which  reached  the  ear 
of  the  Emperor  through  her  husband,  and  did  a  great  deal  of 
harm.  She  and  M.  Maret  would  have  liked  people  to  pay 
regular  court  to  them,  and  many  persons  lent  themselves  to 
this  pretension.  As  I  showed  a  decided  objection  to  doing 
so,  Mme.  Maret  took  an  aversion  to  me,  and  contrived  to 
inflict  many  petty  annoyances  upon  me. 

Any  one  who  chose  to  speak  evil  of  others  to  Bonaparte 
was  pretty  sure  of  gaining  his  ear ;  for  he  was  always  credu- 
lous of  evil.  He  disliked  Mme.  Maret ;  he  even  judged  her 
too  severely  ;  nevertheless  he  chose  to  believe  all  stories  that 
came  to  him  through  her.  I  believe  her  to  have  been  one  of 
the  greatest  sufferers  by  the  fall  of  that  great  Imperial  scaf- 
folding which  brought  us  all  to  the  ground. 

During  the  King's  first  residence  in  Paris,  from  1814  to 
1815,  the  Due  de  Bassano  was  accused,  on  sufficient  grounds, 
of  having  carried  on  a  secret  correspondence  with  the  Em- 
peror in  the  island  of  Elba,  and  kept  him  informed  of  the 
state  of  feeling  in  France,  so  that  he  was  induced  to  believe 
he  might  once  more  offer  himself  to  the  French  as  their 
ruler.  Napoleon  returned,  and  his  sudden  arrival  clashed 
with  and  thwarted  the  revolution  which  Fouche  and  Carnot 
were  preparing.  Then  these  two,  being  obliged  to  accept 
Bonaparte,  compelled  him  to  reign  during  the  Hundred 
Days  according  to  their  own  system.  The  Emperor  wished 
to  take  M.  Maret,  whom  he  had  so  many  reasons  for  trust- 
ing, back  into  his  service ;  but  Fouche  and  Carnot  strongly 
objected  to  Maret,  as  a  man  of  no  ability  and  only  capable  of 
blind  devotion  to  his  master's  interest.  Some  idea  of  the 
state  of  bondage  in  which  the  men  of  the  Revolution  kept 
the  netted  lion  at  this  period  may  be  gathered  from  the 
answer  that  Carnot  ventured  to  make  when  the  Emperor 
proposed  putting  M.  Maret  into  the  Government.  "No, 


398  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMITS  AT. 

certainly  not ;  the  French  do  not  wish  to  see  two  Blacas  in 
one  year" — alluding  to  the  Count  de  Blacas,  whom  the 
King  had  brought  with  him  from  England,  and  who  had  all 
the  influence  of  a  favorite. 

On  the  second  fall  of  Bonaparte,  Maret  and  his  wife  has- 
tened to  leave  Paris.  M.  Maret  was  exiled,  and  they  repaired 
to  Berlin.  For  the  last  few  months  Mme.  Maret  has  been 
again  in  Paris,  endeavoring  to  obtain  the  recall  of  her  hus- 
band. It  is  not  unlikely  she  may  succeed,  such  is  the  kind- 
ness of  the  King.* 

Pride  of  rank  was  not  confined  to  Mme.  Maret  alone. 
Mme.  Ney  also  possessed  it.  She  was  niece  to  Mme.  Cam- 
pan,  first  dresser  to  Marie  Antoinette,  and  daughter  of  Mme. 
Augue,  also  one  of  the  Queen's  dressers,  and  she  had  been 
tolerably  well  educated.  She  was  a  mild,  kind-hearted  wo- 
man, but  her  head  was  a  little  turned  by  the  honors  to  which 
she  attained.  She  occasionally  displayed  a  pretentiousness 
which,  after  all,  was  not  inexcusable,  for  she  based  it  on  the 
great  military  renown  of  her  husband,  whose  own  pride  was 
sufficiently  self-asserting.  Mme.  Key,  afterward  Duchesse 
d'Elchingen,  and  later  Princesse  de  la  Moskowa,  was  in  real- 
ity a  very  good,  quiet  woman,  incapable  of  speaking  or  doing 
evil,  and  perhaps  as  incapable  of  saying  or  doing  anything 
good.  She  enjoyed  the  privileges  of  her  rank  to  the  full, 
especially  in  the  society  of  inferiors.  She  was  much  ag- 
grieved at  the  Restoration  by  certain  differences  in  her  posi- 
tion, and  by  the  disdain  of  the  ladies  of  the  royal  Court. 
She  complained  to  her  husband,  and  may  have  contributed 
not  a  little  to  irritate  him  against  the  new  state  of  things, 
which,  though  not  altogether  ousting  him,  laid  them  both 
open  to  little  daily  humiliations,  quite  unintentionally  on  the 
part  of  the  King.  On  the  death  of  her  husband  she  took  up 
her  abode  in  Italy  with  three  or  four  sons.  Her  means  were 
much  smaller  than  might  have  been  supposed,  and  she  had 
acquired  habits  of  great  luxury.  I  have  seen  her  start  for  a 

*  Written  in  June,  1819. 


LADIES-IN-WAITING.  399 

watering-place,  taking  with  her  a  whole  household,  so  as  to 
be  waited  on  according  to  her  liking.  She  took  a  bedstead, 
articles  of  furniture,  a  service  of  traveling-plate  made  ex- 
pressly for  her,  a  train  offourgons,  and  a  number  of  couriers ; 
and  she  would  affirm  that  the  wife  of  a  marshal  of  France 
could  not  travel  otherwise.  Her  house  was  magnificently 
appointed ;  the  purchase  and  furnishing  cost  eleven  hundred 
thousand  francs.  Mme.  Ney  was  tall  and  slight ;  her  fea- 
tures were  rather  large,  her  eyes  fine.  Her  expression  was 
mild  and  pleasant,  and  her  voice  very  sweet. 

Mme.  Lannes,  afterward  Duchesse  de  Montebello,  was 
another  of  our  beauties.  There  was  something  virginal  in 
her  face ;  her  features  were  pure  and  regular,  her  skin  was 
of  a  delicate  fairness.  She  was  a  good  wife  and  an  excellent 
mother,  and  was  always  cold,  reserved,  and  silent  in  society. 
The  Emperor  appointed  her  Lady  of  Honor  to  the  Arch- 
duchess, who  became  passionately  fond  of  her,  and  whom 
she  completely  governed.  She  accompanied  the  Archduchess 
on  her  return  to  Yienna,  and  then  came  back  to  Paris,  where 
she  now  lives  in  retirement,  entirely  devoted  to  her  children. 

The  number  of  the  ladies-in-waiting  became  by  degrees 
considerable,  but,  on  the  whole,  there  is  little  to  be  said 
about  so  many  women,  all  playing  so  small  a  part.  I  have 
already  spoken  of  Mmes.  de  Montmorency,  de  Mortemart, 
and  de  Chevreuse.  There  remains  for  me  simply  to  name 
Mmes.  de  Talhouet,  Lauriston,  de  Colbert,  Marescot,  etc. 
These  were  quiet,  amiable  persons,  of  ordinary  appearance, 
no  longer  young.  The  same  might  be  said  of  a  number  of 
Italians  and  Belgians  who  came  to  Paris  for  their  two  months 
of  Court  attendance,  and  who  were  all  more  or  less  silent 
and  apparently  out  of  their  element.  In  general  sufficient 
regard  was  paid  to  youth  and  beauty  in  the  selection  of 
the  ladies-in-waiting ;  they  were  always  placed  with  ex- 
treme care.  Some  of  them  lived  in  this  Court  silent 
and  indifferent;  others  received  its  homages  with  more  or. 
less  ease  and  pleasure.  Everything  was  done  quietly,  be- 
30 


400  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

cause  Bonaparte  willed  that  such  should  be  the  case.  He 
had  prudish  caprices  at  times  either  in  regard  to  himself  or 
others.  He  objected  to  any  demonstrations  of  friendship  or 
dislike.  In  a  life  that  was  so  busy,  so  regulated  and  dis- 
ciplined, there  was  not  much  chance  for  either  the  one  or 
the  other. 

Among  the  persons  of  whom  the  Emperor  had  composed 
the  various  households  of  his  family,  there  were  also  ladies 
of  distinction ;  but  at  Court  they  were  of  still  less  importance 
than  ourselves. 

I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  life  was  rather  dreary  under 
his  mother's  roof.  With  Mme.  Joseph  Bonaparte  it  was 
simple  and  easy.  Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  gathered  about  her 
her  old  school  companions,  and  kept  up  with  them,  so  far  as 
lay  in  her  power,  the  familiarity  of  their  youth.  At  Mine. 
Murat's,  although  a  trifle  stiff  and  stilted,  things  were  care- 
fully regulated  with  order  and  discipline.  Public  opinion 
stigmatized  the  Princess  Borghese ;  her  conduct  cast  an  un- 
fortunate reflection  upon  the  young  and  pretty  women  who 
formed  her  court. 

It  may  not  be  useless  to  linger  here  for  a  little,  to  say  a 
few  words  in  regard  to  those  persons  who  were  at  this  time 
distinguished  in  literature  and  art,  and  to  the  works  which 
appeared  from  the  foundation  of  the  Consulate  up  to  this 
year,  1806.  Among  the  former  I  find  four  of  whom  I  can 
speak  with  some  detail.* 

Jacques  Delille,  whom  we  more  generally  know  under 
the  title  of  the  Abbe  de  Delille,  had  seen  the  best  years  of 
his  life  pass  away  in  the  times  which  preceded  our  Revolu- 
tion. He  united  to  brilliant  talents  the  charms  of  sweetness 
of  temper  and  agreeable  manners.  He  acquired  the  title  of 
Abbe  because  in  those  days  it  conferred  a  certain  rank ;  he 
dropped  it  after  the  Revolution  to  marry  a  woman  of  good 
family,  commonplace,  and  by  no  means  agreeable,  but  whose 
ministrations  had  become  essential  to  him.  Always  received 

*  Jacques  Delille,  M.  de  Chateaubriand,  Mme.  de  Stae'l,  Mme.  de  Genlis. 


JACQUES  DELILLE.  401 

in  the  best  society  of  Paris,  highly  regarded  by  Queen  Marie 
Antoinette,  overwhelmed  by  kindnesses  from  the  Comte 
d' Artois,  he  knew  'only  the  pleasant  side  of  the  life  of  a  man 
of  letters.  He  was  petted  and  made  much  of ;  his  grace  and 
simplicity  of  soul  were  very  remarkable ;  the  magic  of  his 
diction  was  incomparable  ?  when  he  recited  verses  every  one 
was  eager  for  the  pleasure  of  hearing  him.  The  bloody 
scenes  of  the  Revolution  appalled  this  young  and  tender 
nature ;  he  emigrated,  and  met  everywhere  in  Europe  with 
a  reception  so  warm  that  it  consoled  him  for  his  exile.  How- 
ever, when  Bonaparte  had  reestablished  order  in  France,  M. 
Delille  wished  to  return  to  his  native  land,  and  he  came 
back  to  Paris  with  his  wife.  He  had  grown  old  and  was 
nearly  blind,  but  always  delightful,  and  teeming  with  fine 
works  which  he  meant  to  publish  in  his  own  country.  Again 
did  all  literary  people  crowd  about  him,  and  Bonaparte  him- 
self made  some  advances.  The  professor's  chair  in  which  he 
had  inculcated  with  so  much  talent  the  principles  of  French 
literature  was  restored  to  him,  and  pensions  were  offered  him 
as  the  price  of  a  few  laudatory  verses.  But  M.  Delille,  desir- 
ing to  preserve  the  liberty  of  the  recollections  which  attached 
him  irrevocably  to  the  house  of  Bourbon,  withdrew  to  a 
retired  part  of  the  city,  and  thus  escaped  both  caresses  and 
offers.  He  gave  himself  up  exclusively  to  work,  and  an- 
swered every  one  with  his  own  lines  from  "  L'Homme  des 
Champs": 

"  Auguste  triomphant'pour  Virgile  fut  juste. 
J'imitai  le  poete,  imitez-donc  Auguste, 
Et  laissez-moi  sans  nom,  sans  fortune,  et  sans  fers, 
Rever  au  bruit  des  eaux,  de  la  lyre  et  des  vers."* 

If  Bonaparte  was  offended  by  this  resistance,  he  never 
showed  it ;  esteem  and  general  affection  were  the  aegis  which 

*  We  had  from  him  in  the  space  of  a  few  years  translations  of  the  "  JSneid  " 
and  of  "  Paradise  Lost,"  his  own  poem  of  "  L'Homme  des  Champs,"  "  L'lmagi- 
nation,"  and  others,  and  finally  "  La  Pitie,"  which  appeared  only  in  boards  by 
order  of  the  police. 


402  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B^MUSAT. 

protected  the  amiable  poet.  He  lived,  therefore,  a  serene 
and  tranquil  life,  and  died  too  soon,  since,  with  the  senti- 
ments he  had  preserved,  he  would  have  rejoiced  at  the  return 
of  the  Princes  whom  he  had  never  ceased  to  love. 

In  the  times  when  Bonaparte  was  still  only  Consul,  and 
when  he  amused  himself  in  following  up  even  less  conspicu- 
ous persons,  he  took  it  into  his  head  that  he  wished  M.  De- 
lille  to  see  him,  hoping  perhaps  to  gain  him  over,  or  at  all 
events  to  dazzle  him.  Mme.  Bacciochi  was  bidden  to  invite 
the  poet  to  pass  an  evening  at  her  house.  Some  few  per- 
sons, of  whom  I  was  one,  were  also  invited.  The  First 
Consul  arrived  with  something  of  the  air  of  Jupiter  Tonans, 
for  he  was  surrounded  by  a  great  number  of  aides,  who  stood 
in  line  and  showed  some  surprise  at  seeing  their  General 
take  so  much  trouble  for  this  frail  old  gentleman  in  a  black 
coat,  who  seemed,  moreover,  a  little  afraid  of  them  all.  Bo- 
naparte, by  way  of  doing  something,  took  his  seat  at  a  card- 
table,  and  summoned  me.  I  was  the  only  woman  in  the 
salon  whose  name  was  not  unknown  to  M.  Delille,  and  I 
instantly  understood  that  Bonaparte  had  selected  me  as  the 
connecting  link  between  the  poet's  time  and  that  of  the 
Consul.  I  endeavored  to  establish  a  certain  harmony  be- 
tween them.  Bonaparte  consented  to  the  conversation  being 
literary,  and  at  first  our  poet  seemed  not  insensible  to  the 
courtesy  extended  him.  Both  men  became  animated,  but 
each  in  his  own  way ;  and  I  very  soon  realized  that  neither 
the  one  nor  the  other  produced  the  effect  he  desired  and  in- 
tended. Bonaparte  liked  to  talk ;  M.  Delille  was  loquacious 
and  told  long  stories  ;  they  interrupted  each  other  constantly ; 
they  did  not  listen,  and  never  replied  ;  they  were  both  ac- 
customed to  praise  ;  they  each  felt  a  conviction  before  many 
minutes  had  expired  that  they  were  not  making  a  good  im- 
pression on  each  other,  and  ended  by  separating  with  some 
fatigue,  and  perhaps  discontented.  After  this  evening  M.  De- 
lille said  that  the  Consul's  conversation  smelled  of  gun-pow- 
der ;  Bonaparte  declared  that  the  old  poet  was  in  his  dotage. 


M.  DE  CHATEAUBRIAND.  4-03 

I  know  very  little  in  regard  to  M.  de  Chateaubriand's 
youth.  Having  emigrated  with  his  family,  he  knew  in  Eng- 
land M.  de  Fontanes,  who  saw  his  first  manuscript,  and  en- 
couraged him  in  his  intention  of  writing.  On  his  return  to 
France  they  kept  up  their  relations,  and  I  believe  Chateau- 
briand was  presented  by  M.  de  Fontanes  to  the  First  Consul. 
Having  published  the  "  Genie  du  Christianisme "  at  the 
time  of  the  Concordat  of  1801,  he  concluded  that  he  had 
best  dedicate  his  work  to  the  restorer  of  religion.  He  was 
by  no  means  wealthy ;  his  tastes,  his  somewhat  disorderly 
character,  his  ambition,  which  was  boundless  though  vague, 
and  his  excessive  vanity,  all  inspired  him  with  the  desire  as 
well  as  the  need  of  attaching  himself  to  something.  I  do 
not  know  under  what  title  he  was  employed  on  a  mission 
to  Rome.  He  conducted  himself  there  imprudently,  and 
wounded  Bonaparte.  The  ill  humor  that  he  had  caused  and 
his  indignation  at  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  embroiled 
them  completely.  M.  de  Chateaubriand,  on  his  return  to 
Paris,  saw  himself  surrounded  by  women  who  greeted  and 
exalted  him  as  if  he  had  been  a  victim ;  he  eagerly  embraced 
the  opinions  to  which  he  has  since  adhered.  It  was  not  in 
his  nature  to  wish  to  seclude  himself,  or  to  be  forgotten  by 
the  world.  He  was  put  under  surveillance,  which  gratified 
his  vanity.  Those  who  claim  to  know  him  intimately  say 
that  if  Bonaparte,  instead  of  having  him  watched,  had  sim- 
ply shown  a  more  profound  consciousness  of  his  merits, 
Chateaubriand  would  have  been  completely  won  over.  The 
author  would  not  have  been  insensible  to  praise  coming 
from  so  high  a  source.  I  repeat  this  opinion  without  assert- 
ing that  it  was  well  founded.  I  know,  however,  that  it  was 
also  that  of  the  Emperor,  who  said  very  openly,  "  The  diffi- 
culty I  have  is  not  on  the  score  of  buying  M.  de  Chateau- 
briand, but  as  regards  paying  him  the  price  he  sets  upon 
himself."  However  this  may  be,  he  kept  himself  aloof,  and 
frequented  only  the  circles  of  the  opposition.  His  journey 
to  the  Holy  Land  caused  him  to  be  forgotten  for  some  time ; 


4:04:     MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU3AT. 

he  suddenly  reappeared,  and  published  "  Les  Martyrs."  The 
religious  ideas  found  in  every  page  of  his  works,  set  off  with 
the  coloring  of  his  brilliant  talents,  formed  of  his  admirers  a 
sort  of  sect,  and  raised  up  enemies  among  the  philosophical 
writers.  The  newspapers  both  praised  and  attacked  him, 
and  a  controversy  arose  in  regard  to  him,  sometimes  very 
bitter,  which  the  Emperor  favored,  "  because,"  he  said,  "  this 
controversy  occupies  fine  society." 

At  the  time  of  the  appearance  of  "  Les  Martyrs  "  a  kind 
of  Royalist  conspiracy  broke  out  in  Brittany.  One  of  M. 
de  Chateaubriand's  cousins,  who  was  found  to  be  involved  in 
it,  was  taken  to  Paris,  tried,  and  condemned  to  death.  I  was 
connected  with  some  of  Chateaubriand's  intimate  friends; 
they  brought  him  to  me,  and  joined  him  in  begging  me  to 
solicit,  through  the  Empress,  mercy  for  his  relative.  I  asked 
him  to  give  me  a  letter  to  the  Emperor ;  he  refused,  and 
seemed  to  feel  the  greatest  repugnance  to  such  a  step,  but 
consented  to  write  to  Mme.  Bonaparte.  He  gave  me  at  the 
same  time  a  copy  of  "  Les  Martyrs,"  hoping  that  Bonaparte 
would  look  it  over,  and  that  it  would  soften  him  toward  the 
author.  As  I  was  by  no  means  sure  that  this  would  be 
enough  to  appease  the  Emperor,  I  advised  M.  de  Chateau- 
briand to  try  several  methods  at  the  same  time. 

"  You  are  a  relative,"  I  said,  "  of  M.  de  Malesherbes, 
whose  name  may  always  be  uttered  with  the  certainty  of 
obtaining  respect  and  consideration.*  Let  us  now  endeavor 
to  make  it  of  use,  and  name  him  when  you  write  to  the  Em- 
press." 

M.  de  Chateaubriand  surprised  me  greatly  by  rejecting 
this  advice.  He  allowed  me  to  see  that  his  vanity  would  be 
wounded  if  he  did  not  personally  obtain  that  for  which  he 
asked.  His  pride  of  authorship  was  clearly  his  strongest 
feeling,  and  he  wished  to  influence  the  Emperor  in  that  ca- 
pacity. He  consequently  did  not  write  precisely  what  I 

*  Bonaparte  returned  to  Mme.  Montboissier,  an  tmigree,  a  portion  of  her 
estates,  because  she  was  the  daughter  of  M.  de  Malesherbes. 


M.  DE  CHATEAUBRIAND.  405 

would  have  desired.  I,  however,  took  his  letter,  and  did  my 
best  in  addition.  I  even  spoke  to  the  Emperor,  and  seized 
upon  a  favorable  moment  to  read  to  him  some  pages  of  "  Les 
Martyrs."  Finally,  I  mentioned  M.  de  Malesherbes. 

"  You  are  a  skillful  advocate,"  said  the  Emperor,  "  but 
you  do  not  comprehend  the  affair.  It  is  necessary  for  me  to 
make  an  example  in  Brittany ;  it  will  fall  upon  a  man  of 
very  little  interest,  for  this  relation  of  M.  de  Chateaubriand 
has  a  mediocre  reputation.  I  know  that  his  cousin  cares  not 
one  sou  for  him,  and  this  fact  is  proved  to  me  by  the  very 
things  he  has  compelled  you  to  do.  He  has  had  the  childish- 
ness not  to  write  to  me ;  his  letter  to  the  Empress  is  stiff 
and  even  haughty  in  tone.  He  would  like  to  impress  me 
with  the  importance  of  his  talents ;  I  answer  him  with  that 
of  my  policy ,  and  in  all  conscience  this  ought  not  to  humili- 
ate him.  I  have  need  of  an  example  in  Brittany  to  avoid  a 
crowd  of  petty  political  prosecutions.  This  will  give  M.  de 
Chateaubriand  an  opportunity  of  writing  some  pathetic  pages, 
which  he  will  read  aloud  in  the  Faubourg  Saint- Germain. 
The  fine  ladies  will  weep,  and  you  will  see  that  this  will 
console  him!" 

It  was  impossible  to  shake  a  determination  expressed  in 
this  way.  All  means  that  the  Empress  and  I  attempted 
were  useless,  and  the  sentence  was  executed.  That  same 
day  I  received  a  note  from  M.  de  Chateaubriand,  which  in 
spite  of  myself  recalled  Bonaparte's  words.  He  wrote  to 
me  that  he  had  thought  it  his  duty  to  be  present  at  the 
death  of  his  relative,  and  that  he  had  shuddered  afterward 
on  seeing  dogs  lap  up  the  blood.  The  whole  note  was 
written  in  a  similar  tone.  I  had  been  touched,  but  this  re- 
volted me.  I  do  not  know  whether  it  was  he  or  myself  that 
was  in  fault.  A  few  days  later  M.  de  Chateaubriand,  dressed 
in  full  mourning,  did  not  appear  much  afflicted,  but  his  irri- 
tation against  the  Emperor  was  greatly  augmented. 

This  event  brought  me  into  connection  with  him.  His 
works  pleased  me,  but  his  presence  disturbed  my  liking  for 


406  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

them.  He  was,  and  is  still,  much  spoiled  by  society,  par- 
ticularly by  women.  He  places  his  associates  in  a  most  em- 
barrassing position  at  times,  because  one  sees  immediately 
that  one  has  nothing  to  teach  him  as  to  his  own  value.  He 
invariably  takes  the  first  place,  and,  making  himself  com- 
fortable there,  becomes  extremely  amiable.  But  his  conver- 
sation, which  displays  a  vivid  imagination,  exhibits  also  a 
certain  hardness  of  heart,  and  a  selfishness  that  is  but  ill  con- 
cealed. His  works  are  religious,  and  indicate  none  but  the 
noblest  sentiments.  He  is  in  earnest  when  he  writes,  but 
he  lacks  gravity  in  his  bearing.  His  face  is  handsome,  his 
form  somewhat  awry,  and  he  is  careful  and  even  affected  in 
his  toilet.  It  would  seem  that  he  prefers  in  love  that  which 
is  generally  known  as  les  bonnes  fortunes.  It  is  plain  that 
he  prefers  to  have  disciples  rather  than  friends.  In  fine,  I 
conclude  from  all  that  I  have  seen  that  it  is  better  to  read 
him  than  to  know  him.  Later  on,  I  will  narrate  what  took 
place  in  regard  to  the  decennial  prizes. 

I  have  hardly  seen  Mme.  de  Stael,  but  I  have  been  sur- 
rounded by  persons  who  have  known  her  well.  My  mother 
and  some  of  my  relatives  were  intimate  with  her  in  their 
youth,  and  have  told  me  that  in  her  earliest  years  she  dis- 
played a  character  which  promised  to  carry  her  beyond  the  re- 
straints of  nearly  all  social  customs.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  she 
enjoyed  the  most  abstract  reading  and  the  most  impassioned 
works.  The  famous  Franclieu  of  Geneva,  finding  her  one 
day  with  a  volume  of  J.  J.  Rousseau  in  her  hand,  and  sur- 
rounded by  books  of  all  kinds,  said  to  her  mother,  Mme. 
decker :  "  Take,  care ;  you  will  make  your  daughter  a  rana- 
tic  or  a  fool."  This  severe  judgment  was  -not  realized,  and 
yet  it  is  impossible  not  to  feel  that  there  was  something 
very  odd,  something  that  looked  like  mental  alienation,  in  the 
manner  in  which  Mme.  de  Stael  acted  her  part  as  a  woman 
in  the  world.  Surrounded  in  her  father's  house  by  a  circle 
consisting  of  all  the  men  in  the  city  who  were  in  any  way 
distinguished,  excited  by  the  conversations  that  she  heard  as 


MME.  DE  STAEL.  407 

well  as  by  her  own  nature,  her  intellectual  faculties  were 
perhaps  developed  to  excess.  She  then  acquired  the  taste 
for  controversy  which  she  has  since  practiced  so  much,  and 
in  which  she  has  shown  herself  so  piquante  and  so  distin- 
guished. She  was  animated  even  to  agitation,  perfectly  true 
and  natural,  felt  with  force,  and  expressed  "herself  with  fire. 
Harassed  by  an  imagination  which  consumed  her,  too  eager 
for  notoriety  and  success,  hampered  by  those  laws  of  society 
which  keep  women  within  narrow  bounds,  she  braved  every- 
thing, conquered  everything,  and  suffered  much  from  this 
stormy  contest  between  the  demon  that  pushed  her  on  and 
the  social  proprieties  which  could  not  restrain  her. 

She  had  the  misfortune  to  be  excessively  plain,  and  to  be 
miserable  on  that  account ;  for  it  seemed  as  if  she  felt  within 
herself  a  craving  for  successes  of  all  kinds.  "With  a  passably 
pretty  face,  she  would  probably  have  been  happier,  because 
she  would  have  been  calmer.  Her  nature  was  too  passionate 
for  her  not  to  love  strongly,  and  her  imagination  too  vivid 
for  her  not  to  think  that  she  loved  often.  The  celebrity  she 
acquired  naturally  brought  to  her  much  homage,  by  which 
her  vanity  was  gratified.  Although  ahe  had  great  kindness 
of  heart,  she  excited  both  hatred  and  envy;  she  startled 
women,  and  she  wounded  many  men  whose  superior  she 
thought  herself.  Some  of  her  friends,  however,  were  always 
faithful,  and  her  own  loyalty  to  friendship  never  failed. 

When  Bonaparte  was  made  Consul,  Mme.  de  Stael  had 
already  become  famous  through  her  opinions,  her  conduct, 
and  her  works.  A  personage  like  Bonaparte  excited  the 
curiosity,  and  at  first  even  the  enthusiasm,  of  a  woman  who 
was  always  awake  to  all  that  was  remarkable.  She  became 
deeply  interested  in  him — sought  him,  pursued  him  every- 
where. She  believed  that  the  happy  combination  of  so 
many  distinguished  qualities  and  of  so  many  favorable  cir- 
cumstances might  be  turned  to  the  profit  of  her  idol,  Lib- 
erty ;  but  she  quickly  startled  Bonaparte,  who  did  not  wish 
to  be  either  watched  or  divined.  Mme.  de  Stael,  after  mak- 


4:08  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

ing  him  uneasy,  displeased  him.  He  received  her  advances 
coldly,  and  disconcerted  her  by  his  bluntness  and  sharp 
words.  He  offended  many  of  her  opinions ;  a  certain  dis- 
trust grew  up  between  them,  and,  as  they  were  both  high- 
tempered,  this  distrust  was  not  long  in  changing  to  hatred. 

When  in  Paris,  Mme.  de  Stael  received  many  people,  and 
all  political  subjects  were  freely  discussed  under  her  roof. 
Louis  Bonaparte,  then  very  young,  visited  her  sometimes 
and  enjoyed  her  conversation.  His  brother  became  uneasy 
at  this,  and  forbade  his  frequenting  the  house,  and  even  went 
so  far  as  to  have  him  watched.  Men  of  letters,  publicists, 
men  of  the  Revolution,  great  lords,  were  all  to  be  met  there. 

"  This  woman,"  said  the  First  Consul,  "  teaches  people  to 
think  who  never  thought  before,  or  who  had  forgotten  how 
to  think."  And  there  was  much  truth  in  this.  The  publi- 
cation of  certain  works  by  M.  decker  put  the  finishing  touch 
to  his  irritation :  he  banished  Mme.  de  Stael  from  France, 
and  did  himself  great  harm  by  this  act  of  arbitrary  persecu- 
tion. In  addition  to  this,  as  nothing  excites  one  like  a  first 
injustice,  he  even  pursued  those  persons  who  believed  it 
their  duty  to  show  her  kindness  in  her  exile.  Her  works, 
with  the  exception  of  her  novels,  were  mutilated  before 
their  appearance  in  France  ;  all  the  journals  were  ordered  to 
speak  ill  of  them ;  no  generosity  was  shown  her.  When  she 
was  driven  from  her  own  land,  foreign  countries  welcomed 
her  warmly.  Her  talents  fortified  her  against  the  annoy- 
ances of  her  life,  and  raised  her  to  a  height  which  many  men 
might  well  have  envied.  If  Mme.  de  Stael  had  known  how 
to  add  to  her  goodness  of  heart  and  to  her  brilliant  genius 
the  advantages  of  a  calm  and  quiet  life,  she  would  have 
avoided  the  greater  part  of  her  misfortunes,  and  seized  while 
living  the  distinguished  rank  which  will  not  long  be  refused 
her  among  the  writers  of  her  century.  Her  works  indicate 
rapid  and  keen  insight,  and  a  warmth  that  comes  from  her 
soul.  They  are  characterized  by  an  imagination  that  is  al- 
most too  vivid,  but  she  lacks  clearness  and  good  taste.  In 


MME.  DE  STAEL.  409 

reading  her  writings  one  sees  at  once  that  they  are  the  results 
of  an  excitable  nature,  rebelling  under  order  and  regularity. 
Her  lif  e  was  not  exactly  that  of  a  woman,  nor  could  it  be 
that  of  a  man ;  it  was  utterly  deficient  in  repose — a  depriva- 
tion without  remedy  for  happiness,  and  even  for  talent. 

After  the  first  restoration,  Mme.  de  Stael  returned  to 
France,  overwhelmed  with  joy  at  being  once  more  in  her 
own  land,  and  at  seeing  the  dawn  of  the  constitutional  regime 
for  which  she  had  so  ardently  longed.  Bonaparte's  return 
struck  terror  to  her  soul.  Again  she  resumed  her  wander- 
ings, but  her  exile  this  time  lasted  only  a  hundred  days. 
She  reappeared  with  the  King.  She  was  very  happy.  She 
had  married  her  daughter  to  the  Due  de  Broglie,  who  unites 
to  the  distinction  of  his  name  a  noble  and ,  elevated  nature ; 
the  liberation  of  France  satisfied  her,  her  friends  were  near 
her,  and  the  world  crowded  about  her.  This  was  the  time 
when  death  claimed  her,  at  the  age  of  fifty.*  The  last  work 
on  which  she  was  engaged,  and  which  she  had  not  completed, 
was  published  after  her  death ;  this  has  made  her  thoroughly 
known  to  us.f  This  work  not  only  paints  the  times  in 
which  she  lived,  but  gives  a  clear  and  exact  idea  of  the  cen- 
tury which  gave  her  birth — which  alone  could  have  developed 
her,  and  of  which  she  is  not  one  of  the  least  results. 

I  occasionally  heard  Bonaparte  speak  of  Mme.  de  Stael. 
The  hatred  he  bore  her  was  unquestionably  founded  in  some 
degree  upon  that  jealousy  with  which  he  was  inspired  by  any 
superiority  which  he  could  not  control ;  and  his  words  were 
often  characterized  by  a  bitterness  which  elevated  her  in 
spite  of  himself,  and  lowered  him  in  the  estimation  of  those 
who,  in  the  full  possession  of  their  reasoning  faculties,  lis- 
tened to  him. 

While  Mme.  de  Stael  could  complain  with  so  much  jus- 
tice of  the  persecution  to  which  she  was  subjected,  there  was 
another  woman,  much  her  inferior  and  far  less  celebrated, 
*  In  1817. 

f  "  Considerations  sur  la  Revolution  Fra^aise."— -P.  R. 


410  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

who  had  had  reason  to  rejoice  in  the  protection  accorded  to 
her  by  the  Emperor.  This  was  Mme.  de  Genlis.  He  never 
found  in  her  either  talents  or  opinions  in  opposition  to  his 
own.  She  had  loved  and  glorified  the  Revolution,  and  well 
understood  how  to  profit  by  all  its  liberties.  In  her  old  age 
she  became  both  a  prude  and  a  devote.  She  attached  herself 
to  order  and  discipline,  and  for  this  reason,  or  under  this 
pretext,  manifested  a  profound  admiration  for  Bonaparte,  by 
which  he  was  much  flattered ;  he  bestowed  a  pension  upon 
her,  and  instituted  a  sort  of  correspondence  with  her,  in  the 
course  of  which  she  kept  him  informed  of  all  that  she  felt 
would  be  useful  to  him,  and  taught  him  much  regarding  the 
ancient  regime  which  he  wished  to  know.  She  loved  and 
protected  M.  Fievee,  then  a  very  young  writer;  she  drew 
him  into  this  correspondence,  and  it  was  in  this  way  that 
between  himself  and  Bonaparte  were  established  those  rela- 
tions of  which  Fievee  subsequently  boasted  so  much.  Al- 
though flattered  by  the  admiration  of  Mme.  de  Genlis, 
Bonaparte  understood  her  thoroughly.  He  once  expressed 
himself  openly  in  my  presence  in  regard  to  her.  He  was 
speaking  of  that  prudery  which  permeates  all  her  works. 
"  "When  Mme.  de  Genlis,"  he  said,  "  wishes  to  define  virtue, 
she  speaks  of  it  as  of  a  discovery ! " 

The  Restoration  did  not  reestablish  relations  between 
Mme.  de  Genlis  and  the  house  of  Orleans.  The  Duke  of 
Orleans  did  not  choose  to  see  her  more  than  once,  but  con- 
tented himself  with  continuing  the  pension  allowed  her  by 
the  Emperor. 

These  two  women  were  not  the  only  ones  who  wrote  and 
published  their  works  under  Bonaparte's  rule.  Of  the  others 
I  will  mention  only  a  few,  at  the  head  of  whom  I  will  place 
Mme.  Cottin,  so  distinguished  for  the  warmth  of  an  impas- 
sioned imagination  which  communicated  itself  to  her  style, 
and  Mme.  de  Flahault,  who  married  at  the  beginning  of  this 
century  M.  de  Souza,  then  Ambassador  from  Portugal,  and 
who  wrote  some  very  pretty  novels.  There  were  others  still 


ROMANCES. 

whose  names  are  to  be  found  in  the  newspapers  of  that  day. 
Novels  have  multiplied  greatly  in  France  in  the  last  thirty 
years,  and  merely  by  reading  these  one  has  a  very  clear  idea 
of  the  progress  of  the  French  mind  since  the  Be  volution. 
The  disorder  of  the  first  years  of  this  Revolution  turned  the 
mind  from  all  those  pleasures  which  only  interest  when  in 
repose.  Young  people  generally  were  but  half  educated ; 
the  differences  of  parties  destroyed  public  opinion.  At  the 
time  when  that  great  regulator  had  entirely  disappeared, 
mediocrity  could  show  itself  without  fear.  All  sorts  of  at- 
tempts were  made  in  literature,  and  imaginative  works,  al- 
ways easiest  when  most  fantastic,  were  published  with  impu- 
nity. People,  with  their  minds  heated  by  the  rapidity  of 
events,  yielded  to  a  kind  of  excitement  and  enthusiasm 
which  found  a  field  in  the  invention  of  fables  and  in  the 
style  of  our  romances.  Liberty  alone,  which  men  did  not 
enjoy,  can  develop  with  grandeur  those  emotions  which  our 
great  political  storms  had  aroused.  But  in  all  times  and 
under  all  governments  women  can  write  and  talk  of  love, 
and  works  of  this  kind  met  wi'th  general  approval.  There 
was  little  or  none  of  Mme.  de  la  Fayette's  elegance,  nor  of 
Mme.  Riccoboni's  delicate,  refined  wit ;  nor  did  they  amuse 
themselves  by  describing  the  usages  of  courts,  the  habits  of 
a  state  of  society  now  nearly  passed  away ;  but  they  repre- 
sented powerful  scenes  of  passion  and  human  nature  in  try- 
ing positions.  The  heart  was  often  unveiled  in  these  ani- 
mated fables,  and  some  men  even,  in  order  to  give  variety 
to  their  sensations,  engaged  in  this  style  of  composition. 

After  all,  there  is  some  truth  and  nature  in  the  tone  of 
the  works  published  since  the  epoch  of  which  we  speak. 
Even  in  the  romances,  the  enthusiasm  is  rather  too  strong 
than  too  affected,  and,  generally  speaking,  they  are  not  per- 
verted by  a  false  taste.  The  wild  errors  of  our  Revolution 
upheaved  French  society,  and  later  this  society  was  unable  to 
recreate  itself  on  the  same  erroneous  foundation.  Each  of 
the  individuals  who  composed  it  was  not  only  displaced,  but 


412  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  KfiMUSAT. 

was  even  entirely  changed.  Merely  conventional  customs 
have  by  degrees  disappeared,  and  in  all  the  relations  of  life 
the  difference  has  been  felt.  Discourses  written  and  spoken 
are  no  longer  the  same,  nor  are  pictures.  We  have  come  to 
seek  stronger  sensations  and  emotions  that  are  more  real, 
because  sorrow  has  developed  the  habit  of  keener  feeling. 
Bonaparte  caused  nothing  to  move  backward,  but  he  re- 
strained everything.  The  return  of  order  to  the  Govern- 
ment brought  back  also  what  M.  de  Fontanes  called  les  bonnes 
lettres.  It  now  began  to  be  felt  that  good  taste,  discretion, 
and  moderation  should  count  for  something  in  the  works  of 
talent.  If  the  good  genius  of  France  had  permitted  Bonaparte 
to  bestow  upon  us  some  shadow  of  liberty  at  the  same  time 
that  he  brought  us  repose,  it  is  probable  that  the  recollections 
of  a  stormy  period,  combined  with  the  comfort  of  a  more 
settled  state  of  things,  would  have  led  to  more  important 
productions.  But  the  Emperor,  desiring  that  all  should  turn 
to  his  advantage  alone,  while  at  the  same  time  making  enor- 
mous efforts  to  attach  to  his  reign  all  celebrities,  so  ham- 
pered their  minds  and  marked  them  with  the  seal  of  his 
despotism  that  he  virtually  interdicted  all  hearty  efforts. 
The  greater  number  of  writers  exhausted  their  inventive  ge- 
nius in  varying  the  prescribed  and  well-recompensed  praise. 
No  political  works  were  sanctioned,  and  in  all  imaginary  cre- 
ations every  doubtful  application  was  avoided  with  the  ut- 
most care.  Comedy  dared  not  depict*  the  manners  of  the 
day.  Tragedy  only  ventured  to  represent  certain  heroes. 
There  was  so  much  in  the  Emperor  that  could  honestly  be 
praised,  that  conscience  was  appeased ;  but  true  invention, 
repressed,  soon  becomes  extinct. 

Meanwhile  time  and  progress,  combined  with  the  habit- 
ual good  taste  of  France,  which  had  such  examples  in  the 
past,  all  had  their  effect.  All  that  was  produced  had  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  elegance,  and  those  who  engaged  in  authorship 
wrote  more  or  less  well.  A  prudent  mediocrity  was  the 
order  of  the  day.  The  first  quality  of  genius  is  strength  of 


LITERATURE.  413 

thought,  and  when  thought  is  restrained  one  limits  one's  self 
to  the  perfecting  of  one's  diction.  One  can  only  conscien- 
tiously do  the  best  that  is  permitted.  And  this  explains  the 
sameness  of  the  works  of  the  beginning  of  this  century.  But 
nowadays  the  liberty  we  have  gained  extends  in  all  direc- 
tions, and  we  have  bequeathed  to  our  children  the  habit  of 
perfecting  the  details  of  execution,  with  the  hope  that  they 
will  enrich  these  details  by  their  genius. 

I  have  previously  said  that,  while  strength  of  expression 
was  forbidden  us,  we  were  at  least  allowed  to  be  natural ; 
and  this  quality  certainly  makes  itself  felt  in  the  greater 
number  of  the  literary  productions  of  our  time.  The  stage, 
which  was  afraid  to  present  the  vices  and  the  follies  of  each 
class,  because  all  classes  were  recreated  by  Bonaparte,  and  it 
was  necessary  to  respect  his  work,  disembarrassed  itself  of 
the  affectation  and  cant  which  preceded  the  Revolution.  At 
the  head  of  our  comic  authors  Picard  must  be  placed — Picard, 
who  has  so  often,  with  so  much  originality  and  gayety,  given 
us  an  idea  of  the  manners  and  customs  of  Paris  under  the 
government  of  the  Directory.  After  his  name  come  those 
of  Duval  and  several  authors  of  comic  opera. 

We  have  seen  the  birth  and  death  of  many  distinguished 
poets  :  Legouve,  who  was  made  known  to  us  by  "  La  Mort 
d'Abel,"  which  he  followed  by  "  La  Mort  d'Henri  IY.,"  and 
who  wrote  fine  fugitive  poems ;  Arnault,  author  of  "  Marius 
a  Minturnes  " ;  Raynouard,  who  made  a  great  success  in  "  Les 
Templieres " ;  Lemercier,  who  appeared  before  the  public 
first  with  his  "  Agamemnon,"  the  best  of  his  works ;  Chenier, 
whose  talents  bore  too  revolutionary  an  imprint,  but  who 
had  a  strong  perception  of  the  tragic.  Then  follow  a  whole 
crowd  of  poets,*  all  more  or  less  pupils  of  M.  Delille,  and 
who,  having  acquired  from  him  the  art  of  rhyming  elegantly, 
celebrated  the  charms  of  the  country  and  simple  pleasures 
and  repose  to  the  sound  of  Bonaparte's  cannon  echoing  all 

*  Such  as  Esmenard,  Parseval-Grandmaison,  Luce  de  Lancival,  Campenon, 
Michaud,  etc. 


414  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  IttiMUSAT. 

through  Europe.  I  will  not  enter  on  this  long  list,  which 
may  be  found  anywhere.  There  were  excellent  translations 
made.  Yery  little  history  was  written ;  the  time  had  come 
when  it  was  necessary  to  use  a  forcible  pen  in  writing  it,  and 
no  one  was  prepared  to  use  such  a  pen. 

Every  one  had  fortunately  become  disgusted  with  the 
light  and  mocking  tone  of  the  philosophy  of  the  last  cen- 
tury, which,  overthrowing  all  belief  by  the  aid  of  ridicule, 
blighted  and  tarnished  all  that  was  best  in  life,  and  made  of 
irreligion  a  jest  and  an  intolerant  dogma.  Sorrowful  experi- 
ence had  begun  to  teach  the  value  of  religious  faith.  Men 
were  insensibly  drawn  into  a  better  path,  and  followed  it, 
though  slowly.* 

*  This  is  what  my  father  thought  in  regard  to  this  chapter  of  literary  his- 
tory :  "  The  opinions  of  my  mother  on  literature  and  art  may  seem  to  be  a  little 
incoherent.  It  is  just  on  these  points  that  the  lingering  prejudices  (if  I  may 
venture  to  use  this  word)  imparted  by  her  education  still  appear.  She  had  a 
strong  admiration  for  Louis  XIV.,  with  political  aspirations  which  would  have 
been  senseless  if  the  government  of  Louis  XIV.  had  been  a  model  government. 
She  herself  preferred  the  cold,  dispassionate  literature  of  that  reign,  and  thought 
she  saw  little  beauty  in  any  other  style.  At  the  same  time,  when  her  classic 
conscience  was  not  aroused,  it  was  the  natural  and  unexpected  that  she  enjoyed. 
She  had  when  young  preferred  Rousseau  to  all  others.  As  soon  as  the  horizon 
of  politics  opened  before  her,  she  became  enthusiastic  over  Mme.  de  Stael.  The 
novelty  of  Chateaubriand's  style  enchanted  her.  She  watched  the  dawn  of  the 
Romantic  epoch.  She  was  carried  away  by  Walter  Scott's  romances,  by  Byron's 
'Childe  Harold'  and  'Parisina,'  and  by  Schiller's  tragedies.  In  spite  of  all 
this,  she  always  seemed  to  think  that  the  literature  of  the  Revolution  was  irreg- 
ular, and  rejoiced  at  the  return  under  the  Empire  of  a  correct  style  and  careful 
composition,  and  maintained,  moreover,  that  she  had  done  her  part  toward  the 
restoration  of  a  higher  standard  for  literature  and  art. 

"  What  she  has  said  of  Chateaubriand  is  a  little  hard.  She  does  not  say 
enough  of  the  strong  admiration  she  felt  for  his  talent.  It  is  true  that  the  part 
he  played  and  his  writings  from  1815  to  1820  displeased  her  greatly;  and,  as 
his  character  had  never  been  agreeable  to  her,  she  allowed  herself  to  judge  him 
with  some  severity.  She  had  at  intervals  invited  him  to  her  house  during 
the  Empire,  and  wished  that  he  should  seem  to  appreciate  her.  It  is  neverthe- 
less true  that  his  hard,  dry  manner  did  not  please  her,  and  this  manner  he  never 
laid  aside  except  to  adopt  a  certain  mocking  laisser-aller — a  Voltairean  indiffer- 
ent way  of  talking.  This  style  he  never  adopted  in  her  presence.  It  was  under 
this  last  unceremonious  aspect  that  many  persons  knew  him,  however,  and  par- 


ART.  415 

Art,  which  stands  not  in  so  much  need  of  liberty  as 
letters,  had  not  stood  altogether  still.  It  had  made  some 
progress,  but  at  the  same  time  it  had  suffered  from  the  gen- 
eral restraint.  Among  our  most  famous  painters  was  David, 
who  most  unfortunately  marred  his  reputation  by  abandon- 
ing himself  to  the  most  disgusting  errors  of  the  Eevolution- 
ary  madness.  After  refusing  in  1792  to  paint  Louis  XVI., 
because  he  said  he  did  not  choose  that  his  brush  should 
delineate  a  tyrant's  features,  he  submitted  with  a  very  good 
grace  to  Bonaparte,  and  represented  him  in  all  ways.  Then 
came  Gerard,  who  painted  so  many  historical  portraits,  an 
immortal  "  Battle  of  Austerlitz,"  and  not  long  since  an 
"Entry  of  Henry  IY.  into  Paris,"  which  stirred  every 
French  heart ;  Girodet,  so  admirable  for  the  purity  of  his 
drawing  and  the  boldness  of  his  conceptions ;  Gros,  an  emi- 
nently dramatic  artist ;  Guerin,  whose  brush  stirs  the  souls 
of  all  who  can  feel ;  Isabey,  so  clever  and  so  delicate  in  his 
miniatures ;  and  a  crowd  of  others  of  all  kinds.  The  Em- 
peror patronized  and  protected  all.  Everything  was  repro- 
duced by  the  brush  and  the  palette  and  money  was  lavished 

ticularly  Mol6,  who  was  to  a  certain  extent  intimate  with  him.  In  that  circle 
which  may  be  called  the  society  of  the  Faubourg  Saint-Honor^,  Chateaubriand 
was  judged  very  severely. 

"My mother  had  lived  entirely  out  of  Mme.  de  Stael'a  circle,  and  felt  against 
her  all  the  prejudices  which  were  the  natural  result  of  her  education  and  social 
position.  She  heard  people  speak  of  her,  more  especially  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
who  laughed  at  her,  than  which  nothing  could  have  done  her  more  harm.  As 
oar  impressions  are  much  less  independent  of  our  opinions  than  we  could  wish, 
those  of  my  mother  at  first  prevented  her  from  feeling  with  sufficient  force  all 
Mme.  de  Stael's  wit  and  talent.  It  was  not  so  much  that  she  did  not  like  '  Co- 
rinne '  and  *  Delphine,'  but  she  was  afraid  to  like  them ;  and  it  was  only  with 
many  scruples  and  restrictions  that  she  allowed  herself  to  admire  in  her  youth 
those  works  which  betrayed  the  influence  of  philosophy  or  of  the  Revolution. 
All  this  was  changed  hi  1818;  but  there  are  nevertheless  marked  traces  of  the 
past  in  the  manner  in  which  my  mother  sat  in  judgment  on  the  person  of  Mme. 
de  Stae'l,  as  well  as  on  her  literary  works.  I  can  not  restrain  a  smile  when  I  see 
her  speak  of  repose  as  one  of  the  conditions  of  talent.  This  was  an  idea  of  the 
seventeenth  century,  or  rather  of  the  manner  in  which  the  rheteurs  of  those 
times  compelled  us  to  judge  the  seventeenth  century." — P.  B. 
31 


416  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

on  these  artists.  The  Kevolution  had  placed  them  in  society, 
where  they  occupied  an  agreeable  and  often  very  useful  po- 
sition. They  guided  the  development  of  luxury,  and  at  the 
same  time  drew  largely  on  the  poetic  and  picturesque  inci- 
dents of  our  Kevolution  and  of  the  Imperial  reign.  Bona- 
parte was  able  indeed  to  chill  the  expression  of  strong 
thoughts;  but  he  kindled  men's  imaginations,  and  that  is 
enough  for  most  poets  and  for  all  painters. 

The  progress  of  science  was  not  interrupted,  for  it  was 
useful  to  the  Government  and  awakened  no  distrust.  The 
Institute  of  France  numbers  many  distinguished  men.  Bona- 
parte courted  them  all,  and  enriched  some.  He  even  be- 
stowed some  of  his  new  dignities  upon  them.  He  summoned 
them  to  his  Senate.  It  seems  to  me  that  this  was  an  honor 
to  that  body,  and  that  the  idea  was  not  without  grandeur. 
Savants  under  his  rule  have  been  more  independent  than 
any  other  classes.  Lagrange,  whom  Bonaparte  made  Sena- 
tor, held  himself  aloof ;  but  Laplace,  Lacepede,  Monge,  Ber- 
thollet,  Cuvier,  and  some  others  accepted  his  favors  eagerly, 
and  repaid  them  with  unfailing  admiration. 

I  can  not  conscientiously  close  this  chapter  without  men- 
tioning the  great  number  of  musicians  who  did  honor  to 
their  profession.  Music  has  attained  to  high  perfection  in 
France.  Bonaparte  had  an  especial  liking  for  the  Italian 
school.  The  expenditures  he  made  in  transplanting  it  to 
France  were  very  useful  to  us,  although  he  allowed  his  own 
caprices  to  govern  him  in  the  distribution  of  his  favors.  For 
example,  he  always  repelled  Cherubini,  because  that  composer, 
displeased  on  one  occasion  by  a  criticisn^  made  by  Bonaparte 
when  he  was  only  a  general,  had  answered  him  somewhat 
rudely  that  "  a  man  might  be  skillful  enough  on  a  battle- 
field and  yet  know  nothing  of  harmony."  He  took  a  fancy 
to  Lesueur,*  and  lost  his  temper  at  the  time  of  the  award  of 
the  decennial  prizes  because  the  Institute  did  not  proclaim 
this  musician  worthy  of  the  prize.  But  as  a  general  thing 

*  Author  of  the  operas  of  "  Les  Bardes  "  and  "  Trajan." 


ART. 

he  did  his  best  to  advance  this  art.  I  saw  him  receive  at 
Malmaison  old  M.  Gretry,  and  treat  him  with  remarkable 
distinction.  Gretry,  Dalayrac,  Mehul,  Berton,  Lesueur,  Spon- 
tini,  and  others  still  were  distinguished  under  the  Empire, 
and  received  recompenses  for  their  works.* 

In  like  manner  actors  met  with  great  favor.  All  that 
I  have  said  of  the  tendency  of  our  authors  may  apply  with 
equal  truth  to  the  drama.  The  natural  has  acquired  a  great 
influence  on  our  stage  since  the  Revolution.  Good  taste  has 
proscribed  pompous  gravity  in  tragedy  and  affectation  in 
comedy.  Talma  and  Mile.  Mars  have  done  much  toward 
strengthening  the  alliance  between  art  and  nature.  Ease 
united  to  vigor  has  been  introduced  in  dancing.  In  short, 
it  may  be  said  that  simplicity,  elegance,  and  harmony  now 
characterize  French  taste,  and  that  all  the  shams  of  phantasy 
and  conventionality  have  disappeared. 

*  It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  my  grandmother,  who  was  a  good  musician 
and  composed  some  pretty  songs,  did  not  more  fully  express  her  judgment  of 
the  musicians  of  her  day.  As  to  the  Emperor,  I  find  in  his  correspondence  sev- 
eral interesting  letters  on  this  subject.  Here  they  are : 

"  BOLOONA,  June  23, 1805. 

"  M.  FOUCHE  :  I  beg  that  you  will  let  me  know  what  this  piece  is,  called 
*  Don  Juan,'  that  they  wish  to  give  at  the  Ope"  ra,  and  for  which  I  am  asked  to 
authorize  the  expense.  I  wish  to  know  your  opinion  on  this  piece  as  regards 
the  view  the  public  are  likely  to  take  of  it." 

"  LUDWIGSBUBO,  October  4, 1805. 

"  MY  BROTHER  :  I  leave  to-night.  Events  will  soon  become  daily  more  inter- 
esting. You  must  at  once  put  in  the  '  Moniteur '  that  the  Emperor  is  well,  and 
that  on  the  4th  of  October  he  was  still  at  Ludwigsburg,  and  that  the  junction 
of  the  army  with  the  Bavarians  is  accomplished.  I  yesterday  heard  at  the  thea- 
tre of  this  court  the  German  opera  of  *  Don  Juan.'  I  imagine  that  the  music  of 
this  opera  is  the  same  as  that  given  in  Paris.  It  strikes  me  as  being  very  good." 

The  same  day  he  wrote  to  the  Minister  of  the  Interior : 

"  M.  CHAMPAGNY  :  I  am  here  at  the  Court  of  WUrtemberg,  and,  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that  the  war  is  going  on,  I  heard  yesterday  some  excellent  music.  Ger- 
man singing  seems  to  me  a  trifle  odd.  Is  the  reserve  on  the  march  ?  Where  is 
the  conscription  of  1805  ?  "—P.  R. 


CHAPTER  XX. 
(1806.) 

Senatm-ConsuUum  of  the  30th  of  March — Foundation  of  Monarchies  and  Duchies 
—Queen  Hortense. 

ON  the  suggestion  of  M.  Portalis,  the  Minister  of  Public 
Worship,  the  Emperor  issued  a  decree  appointing  his  birth- 
day to  be  kept  on  the  Feast  of  the  Assumption,  the  15th  of 
August,  which  was  also  the  anniversary  pf  the  conclusion  of 
the  Concordat.  The  first  Sunday  of  each  December  was 
also  set  apart  as  a  holiday,  in  commemoration  of  Austerlitz. 

On  the  30th  of  March  there  was  an  important  session  of 
the  Senate,  which  gave  rise  to  much  and  various  comment. 
The  Emperor  communicated  to  the  Senators  a  long  list  of 
decrees,  which  were  destined  to  affect  Europe  from  one  end 
to  the  other.  It  will  not  be  amiss  to  give  some  details  of 
these,  as  well  as  an  extract  from  the  speech  of  Cambaceres, 
the  Arch-Chancellor,  which  affords  an  example  of  the  obse- 
quious skill  with  which  the  sudden  resolves  of  a  master  who 
kept  all  things,  even  men's  minds,  in  unceasing  ferment, 
could  be  clothed  in  specious  phrases. 

"  Gentlemen,"  said  Cambaceres,  "  at  the  time  when 
France,  animated  by  the  same  spirit  as  ourselves,  secured 
alike  her  happiness  and  her  glory  by  an  oath  of  obedience  to 
our  august  sovereign,  you  foresaw  in  your  wisdom  the  neces- 
sity of  coordinating  the  system  of  hereditary  government  in 
all  its  parts,  and  likewise  of  strengthening  it  by  institutions 
analogous  to  its  nature. 


420  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

"  Your  wishes  have  been  partly  fulfilled ;  they  will  be 
still  further  accomplished  by  the  various  enactments  which 
his  Majesty  the  Emperor  and  King  orders  me  to  lay  before 
you.  You  will  receive  with  gratitude  these  fresh  proofs  of 
his  confidence  in  the  Senate,  and  his  love  for  the  people,  and 
you  will  hasten,  in  conformity  with  his  Majesty's  intention, 
to  inscribe  them  on  your  registers. 

"The  first  of  these  decrees  is  a  statute  to  regulate  all 
things  relating  to  the  civil  status  of  the  Imperial  family,  and 
it  also  defines  the  duties  of  the  princes  and  princesses  toward 
the  Emperor. 

"  The  second  decree  unites  the  states  of  Venice  to  the 
kingdom  of  Italy. 

"  The  third  confers  the  throne  of  Naples  on  Prince  Jo- 
seph." (Here  follows  an  elaborate  panegyric  of  the  virtues 
of  the  new  Bang,  and  of  the  measure,  by  which  he  retains 
the  title  of  Grand  Dignitary  of  the  Empire.) 

"  The  fourth  contains  the  cession  of  the  duchy  of  Cleves 
and  the  duchy  of  Berg  to  Prince  Murat."  (Similar  pane- 
gyric.) 

"  The  fifth  bestows  the  principality  of  Guastalla  on  the 
Princess  Borghese  and  her  husband."  (Praises  of  both.) 

"  The  sixth  transfers  to  Marshal  Berthier  the  principality 
of  Neufcha'tel."  *  (He  is  complimented  like  the  rest.  This 
touching  proof  of  the  solicitude  of  the  Emperor  for  his  com- 
panion in  arms,  for  his  brave  and  intelligent  fellow  soldier, 

*  In  the  following  terms,  alike  familiar  and  unkind,  the  Emperor  informs 
Marshal  Berthier  of  the  new  favors  he  bestowed  on  him :  "  MALMAISON,  April  1, 
1806. — I  send  you  the  *  Moniteur.'  You  will  see  what  I  am  doing  for  you.  I 
make  but  one  condition :  it  is  that  you  should  marry ;  and  this  must  also  be  a 
condition  of  my  friendship  for  you.  Your  infatuation  has  lasted  long  enough ; 
it  has  become  absurd ;  and  I  have  the  right  to  expect  that  you,  whom  I  have 
called  my  companion  in  arms,  and  whom  posterity  will  always  place  at  my  side, 
shall  no  longer  remain  enslaved  by  such  a  weakness.  You  must  therefore  marry, 
or  I  will  see  you  no  more.  You  are  fifty ;  but  you  come  of  a  family  who  live  to 
eighty,  and  these  thirty  years  are  precisely  those  in  which  the  comforts  of  home 
life  will  be  most  necessary  to  you." — P.  B. 


SENATUS-CONSULTUM  OF  MARCH.  421 

will  not  fail  to  touch  every  loyal  heart,  and  to  gladden  every 
loyal  spirit.) 

"  The  seventh  erects  in  the  states  of  Parma  and  Piacenza 
three  great  titles,  which  will  be  suitably  supported  by  con- 
siderable sums  to  be  raised  in  those  states  by  order  of  his 
Majesty. 

"  By  similar  provisions,  contained  in  decrees  relating  to 
the  states  of  Venice,  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  and  the  princi- 
pality of  Lucca,  his  Majesty  has  created  rewards  worthy  of 
himself  for  several  of  his  subjects  who  have  performed  great 
services  in  war,  or  who,  in  the  discharge  of  important  func- 
tions, have  contributed  in  a  signal  manner  to  the  welfare  of 
the  state.  These  dignities  and  titles  become  the  property  of 
those  invested  with  them,  and  will  descend  in  the  male  line 
to  their  legitimate  heirs.  This  grand  conception,  while  it 
proclaims  to  Europe  the  price  attached  by  his  Majesty  to 
acts  of  valor  in  his  soldiers,  and  to  faithfulness  in  those  em- 
ployed by  him  in  important  affairs,  is  also  of  political  advan- 
tage. The  brilliant  position  of  eminent  men  gives  to  their 
example  and  their  counsels  an  influence  with  the  people 
which  a  monarch  may  sometimes  substitute,  with  advantage, 
for  the  authority  of  public  officials.  At  the  same  time,  such 
men  are  intercessors  between  the  people  and  the  throne." 

It  must  be  admitted  that  a  good  deal  of  progress  had  been 
made  since  the  still  recent  time  when  the  decrees  of  the  Gov- 
ernment were  dated  "  Year  14  of  the  Republic." 

"  It  is,  therefore,  on  these  bases  that  the  Emperor  wishes 
to  build  the  great  political  system  with  the  idea  of  which 
Providence  has  inspired  him,  and  by  which  he  increases  the 
love  and  admiration  for  his  person  which  you  share  with  all 
the  French  nation." 

After  this  speech,  the  various  decrees  were  read  aloud. 
The  following  are  the  most  important  articles : 

By  the  decree  regulating  the  civil  status  of  the  Imperial 
family,  the  princes  and  princesses  could  not  marry  without 

the  consent  of  the  Emperor.     Children  born  of  a  marriage 

. 

< 


422  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

contracted  without  his  consent  would  have  no  claim  to  the 
privileges  which  in  certain  countries  attach  to  morganatic 
marriages. 

Divorce  was  forbidden  to  the  Imperial  family,  but  sepa- 
ration, if  authorized  by  the  Emperor,  was  allowed. 

The  guardians  of  Imperial  children  were  to  be  named  by 
him. 

Members  of  the  Imperial  family  could  not  adopt  children 
without  his  permission. 

The  Arch-Chancellor  of  the  Empire  was  to  fulfill  toward 
the  Imperial  family  all  the  functions  assigned  by  law  to  the 
officers  of  the  civil  status.  A  Secretary  for  the  status  of  the 
Imperial  family  was  to  be  chosen  among  the  Ministers  or 
from  among  the  State  councilors.* 

The  ceremonial  for  marriages  and  births  was  arranged. 

The  Arch-Chancellor  was  to  receive  the  will  of  the  Em- 
peror, as  dictated  by  him  to  the  Secretary  of  the  Imperial 
Family,  in  presence  of  two  witnesses.  The  will  was  to  be 
placed  in  the  keeping  of  the  Senate. 

The  Emperor  was  to  regulate  everything  concerning  the 
education  of  the  princes  and  princesses  of  his  family,  ap- 
pointing or  removing  those  who  had  it  in  charge.  All 
princes  born  in  the  order  of  succession  were  to  be  brought 
up  together  in  a  palace  not  more  than  twenty  leagues  from 
the  residence  of  the  Emperor. 

The  education  of  the  princes  was  to  begin  at  the  age  of 
seven,  and  end  at  that  of  sixteen.  Children  of  certain  per- 
sons distinguished  by  their  services  might  be  admitted  by 
the  Emperor  to  share  in  the  advantages  of  this  education. 

If  a  prince  in  the  order  of  succession  should  ascend  a 
foreign  throne,  he  would  be  bound,  on  his  sons  attaining 
the  age  of  seven,  to  send  them  to  the  aforesaid  palace. 

The  princes  and  princesses  could  not  leave  France,  nor 
remove  beyond  a  radius  of  thirty  leagues,  without  permis- 
sion of  the  Emperor. 

*  This  was  State  Councilor  Regnault  de  Saint-Jean  d'Angely. 


FOUNDATION  OF  MONARCHIES.  423 

If  a  member  of  the  Imperial  family  were  to  misconduct 
himself,  forgetting  his  high  position  and  his  duties,  the  Em- 
peror might,  for  a  space  of  time  not  exceeding  one  year, 
place  him  under  arrest,  forbid  him  his  presence,  or  send  him 
into  exile.  He  might  forbid  any  intercourse  between  mem- 
bers of  his  family  and  persons  who  seemed  to  him  of  doubt- 
ful character.  In  serious  cases,  he  might  order  two  years' 
seclusion  in  a  state  prison.  This  was  to  be  done  in  the 
presence  of  the  Arch-Chancellor  and  of  a  family  council  pre- 
sided over  by  himself ;  the  Secretary  of  the  Imperial  Family 
to  be  in  attendance. 

The  great  dignitaries  and  the  dukes  of  the  Empire  were 
subject  to  the  provisions  of  these  latter  articles. 
After  this  first  decree  came  the  following : 
"  We  have  established  and  we  establish  as  duchies  and 
great  fiefs  of  our  Empire  the  provinces  hereinafter  to  be 
named : 

Dalmatia,  Treviso, 

Istria,  Feltre, 

Friuli,  Bassano, 

Cadore,  Yicenza, 

Belluno,  Padua, 

Conegliano,  Eovigo. 

"  We  reserve  to  ourselves  the  investiture  of  the  said  fiefsy 
to  descend  in  succession  to  male  issue.  In  the  event  of  ex- 
tinction, the  said  fiefs  shall  revert  to  the  Imperial  Crown. 

"It  is  our  intention  that  a  fifteenth  part  of  the  revenue 
that  our  kingdom  of  Italy  draws,  or  may  draw,  from  the 
said  provinces  shall  be  an  appanage  to  the  said  fiefs,  and  be 
possessed  by  those  whom  we  shall  have  invested  with  them. 
We  reserve  to  ourselves  for  the  same  purpose  the  disposal  of 
thirty  millions  of  francs  from  national  property  situate  in  the 
said  provinces.  Le  Mont  Napoleon  *  shall  be  charged  with 
twelve  hundred  thousand  francs  as  Government  annuities,  in 

*  Le  Mont  Napoleon  was  a  creation  of  Government  stock  for  Italy. 


424:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  IttiMUSAT. 

favor  of  those  generals,  officers,  and  soldiers  who  have  done 
good  service  to  the  country  and  to  our  Crown,  but  on  the 
express  condition  that  they  shall  not  alienate  the  same  within 
ten  years,  without  our  permission. 

"  Until  the  kingdom  of  Italy  shall  have  an  army,  we 
grant  to  the  said  kingdom  a  French  contingent,  to  be  main- 
tained by  our  Imperial  Treasury.  To  this  end,  our  Royal 
Treasury  of  Italy  shall  pay  monthly  to  our  Imperial  Treasury 
the  sum  of  two  million  five  hundred  thousand  francs  during 
the  time  that  our  army  shall  sojourn  in  Italy,  that  is,  during 
six  years.  The  heir  presumptive  of  Italy  shall  be  entitled 
Prince  of  Yenice. 

"The  tranquillity  of  Europe  requires  that  we  should 
secure  the  safety  of  the  peoples  of  Naples  and  Sicily,  who 
have  fallen  into  our  power  by  the  right  of  conquest,  and 
who  are  part  of  the  Grand  Empire ;  we  therefore  declare  our 
brother  Joseph  Napoleon,  Grand  Elector  of  France,  King 
of  Naples  and  Sicily.  The  crown  shall  be  hereditary  in  the 
male  line ;  failing  this,  we  appoint  it  to  our  own  legitimate 
children  in  the  male  line,  and  failing  these,  to  the  children 
of  our  brother  Louis  Napoleon ;  *  reserving  to  ourselves,  in 
the  event  of  our  brother  Joseph's  dying  without  male  chil- 
dren, the  right  of  naming  as  successor  to  the  said  crown  a 
prince  of  our  own  family,  or  an  adopted  son,  according  as 
we  may  deem  it  desirable  in  the  interests  of  our  people,  and 
of  that  great  system  which  Divine  Providence  has  destined 
us  to  found. 

"Six  great  fiefs  are  established  in  the  said  kingdom, 
with  the  title  of  duchy,  and  the  same  prerogatives  as  the 
others,  to  be  in  perpetuity  appointed  by  us  and  our  succes- 
sors. 

"  We  reserve  to  ourselves  a  revenue  of  one  million  on  the 
kingdom  of  Naples,  for  distribution  among  the  generals, 
officers,  and  privates  of  our  army,  on  the  same  conditions  as 
those  set  forth  in  the  case  of  le  Mont  Napoleon. 

*  Bonaparte  had  made  all  his  brothers  take  the  name  of  Napoleon. 


FOUNDATION-  OF  MONARCHIES.  425 

"  The  King  of  Naples  shall  be  in  perpetuity  a  grand  dig- 
nitary of  the  Empire,  we  reserving  to  ourselves  the  right  of 
creating  him  a  Prince  instead  of  Grand  Elector. 

"  We  declare  that  the  crown  of  Naples,  which  we  place 
on  the  head  of  Prince  Joseph  and  his  heirs,  shall  in  no  way 
bar  their  right  to  the  succession  to  the  throne  of  France.* 
But  it  is  our  will  also  that  the  crowns  of  France,  Italy,  and 
Naples  and  Sicily  shall  never  be  united  on  the  same  head. 

"We  give  the  duchies  of  Cleves  and  of  Berg  to  our 
brother-in-law  Prince  Joachim,  and  to  his  heirs  male ;  failing 
whom,  they  shall  devolve  on  our  brother  Joseph,  and  if  he 
have  no  male  issue,  on  our  brother  Louis ;  but  they  are  never 
to  be  united  to  the  crown  of  France.  The  Duke  of  Cleves 
and  Berg  will  continue  to  be  Grand  Admiral,  and  we  shall 
have  power  to  create  a  Vice- Admiral." 

Lastly,  the  principality  of  Guastalla  was  bestowed  on 
Princess  Borghese.  The  Prince  was  to  bear  the  title  of 
Prince  of  Guastalla.  Should  they  have  no  issue,  the  Em- 
peror was  to  dispose  of  the  principality  at  his  pleasure.  The 
same  conditions  were  to  hold  good  in  the  case  of  the  princi- 
pality of  Neuf  chdtel.f 

The  principality  of  Lucca  was  augmented  by  the  addition 
of  some  lands  detached  from  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  and  in 
return  was  to  pay  an  annual  sum  of  two  hundred  thousand 
francs,^  which  was  likewise  destined  for  military  rewards. 
A  portion  of  the  national  property  situate  in  the  duchies  of 
Parma  and  Piacenza  was  reserved  for  the  same  object. 

I  have  deemed  it  well  to  give  almost  the  entire  text  of 
the  different  decrees  which  seem  to  me  to  call  for  comment. 
This  act  of  Bonaparte's  revealed  to  some  extent  the  prepon- 
derance which  he  intended  to  give  the  French  Empire  over 

*  Joseph  Bonaparte  had  insisted  on  the  insertion  of  this  article. 

f  Oudinot  took  possession  of  Neufchatel,  at  the  head  of  his  grenadiers,  and 
began  by  confiscating  all  English  merchandise. 

\  All  these  annual  revenues  were  comprised,  together  with  the  levies  made 
in  war  time,  in  what  was  called  the  Extraordinary  Estate. 


426  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

the  conquered  states  of  Europe,  and  also  that  which  he  re- 
served to  himself  personally.  It  may  easily  be  conceived 
that  these  decrees  excited  such  disquiet  throughout  Europe 
as  forbade  us  to  cherish  the  hope  of  a  long  peace.  It  is  also 
plain  from  them  that  Italy,  which  had  been  eager  to  seize 
on  the  independence  which  unity  of  government  seemed  to 
promise  her,  soon  found  her  hopes  betrayed  by  the  secondary 
position  in  which  she  was  placed  by  the  bonds  which  sub- 
jected her  to  the  Emperor. 

~No  matter  how  careful  Prince  Eugene  was,  or  how  mild 
and  just  his  government,  the  Italians  soon  perceived  that 
conquest  had  placed  them  in  the  power  of  a  master,  who 
made  use  of  the  resources  of  their  beautiful  land  for  his  own 
advantage  only.  They  maintained  on  their  territory,  and  at 
their  cost,  a  foreign  army.  The  largest  part  of  their  revenue 
served  to  enrich  Frenchmen.  In  everything  that  was  exact- 
ed of  them,  much  less  regard  was  paid  to  their  interests  than 
to  the  advantage  of  the  Grand  Empire,  and  this  soon  became 
synonymous  with  the  ambitious  projects  of  one  man,  who 
did  not  hesitate  to  claim  from  Italy  sacrifices  he  would  scarce- 
ly have  dared  to  ask  of  France.  The  Yiceroy  endeavored  to 
obtain  some  alleviation  for  the  Italians,  but  in  vain.  They 
learned,  however,  to  do  justice  to  the  character  of  Eugene, 
and  to  distinguish  between  him  and  the  rigorous  measures 
which  he  was  forced  to  carry  out ;  they  were  grateful  to  him 
for  what  he  tried  to  do,  and  for  his  good  intentions.  This, 
however,  did  not  last ;  the  too  much  oppressed  people  lost 
the  power  of  being  just,  and  included  all  Frenchmen,  Prince 
Eugene  at  their  head,  in  the  hatred  they  bore  to  the  Emperor. 

The  Yiceroy  himself,  who  was  a  faithful  servant  to  Bona- 
parte, though  he  was  under  no  delusion  regarding  him,  told 
his  mother  in  my  presence  that  the  Emperor,  jealous  of  the 
affection  Eugene  had  won,  had  imposed  useless  and  oppressive 
measures  upon  him,  in  order  to  alienate  the  good  will  of  the 
Italians. 

The  Yice-Queen  contributed  also,  at  first,  to  the  popular- 


FOUNDATION  OF  MONARCHIES.  427 

ity  of  her  husband.  She  was  beautiful,  very  kind-hearted, 
pious,  and  benevolent,  and  she  charmed  every  one  who  ap- 
proached her.  Toward  Bonaparte  her  manner  was  dignified 
and  cold.  He  disliked  to  hear  her  praised.  She  never  passed 
much  time  in  Paris. 

Several  of  the  articles  of  these  decrees  were  never  car- 
ried out.  Change  of  circumstances  led  to  change  of  purpose ; 
new  passions  brought  forth  new  fancies,  or  sudden  suspicion 
altered  former  resolves.  In  many  respects  the  government 
of  Bonaparte  resembled  the  Palace  of  the  Legislature,  in 
which  the  Chamber  of  Deputies  is  now  installed.  The  for- 
mer building  remains  unaltered ;  but,  in  order  to  render  it 
more  imposing,  a  facade  has  been  erected,  which  seen  from 
the  river-side  is  undoubtedly  a  grand  object',  but,  if  we  walk 
round  the  building,  we  find  that  it  does  not  harmonize  with 
the  architecture  of  the  front.  Bonaparte  frequently  erected 
facades  only,  political,  legislative,  or  administrative. 

After  the  reception  of  these  messages  the  Senate  passed 
a  vote  of  thanks  to  the  Emperor,  and  deputations  were  sent 
to  the  new  Queen  of  Naples,  who  received  them  with  her 
usual  simple  grace,  and  to  the  two  princesses.  Murat  had 
already  departed  to  take  possession  of  his  duchy.  The  news- 
papers assured  us  he  was  received  with  acclamations,  and 
gave  a  similar  account  of  the  delight  of  the  Neapolitans ; 
but  from  private  letters  we  learned  that  the  war  was  to  be 
continued,  and  that  Calabria  would  make  a  stout  resistance. 
Joseph  has  a  mild  disposition,  and  in  no  place  has  he  made 
himself  personally  disliked ;  but  he  is  wanting  in  tact,  and 
he  has  always  shown  himself  unequal  to  the  position  in  which 
he  was  placed.  To  tell  the  truth,  the  business  of  kingship, 
as  established  by  Bonaparte,  has  been  a  difficult  one. 

Having  settled  these  important  points,  the  Emperor  turned 
to  occupations  of  a  lighter  kind.  On  the  7th  of  April  the 
betrothal  of  the  young  couple  of  whom  I  have  already  spoken 
in  a  preceding  chapter  took  place  at  the  Tuileries.  The 
ceremony  was  performed  in  the  Diana  Gallery  in  the  even- 


428  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

ing ;  there  was  a  numerous  and  brilliant  Court.  The  bride 
elect  wore  a  silver-embroidered  gown  ornamented  with  roses. 
The  witnesses  on  her  side  were  MM.  de  Talleyrand,  de 
Champagny,  and  de  Segur;  and  for  the  bridegroom,  the 
Hereditary  Prince  of  Bavaria,  the  Grand  Chamberlain  of 
the  Elector  of  Baden,  and  Baron  Dalberg,  Minister  Pleni- 
potentiary of  Baden.* 

On  the  following  evening  the  marriage  was  celebrated  in 
state.  The  Tuileries  were  illuminated ;  fireworks  were  ex- 
hibited on  the  Place  Louis  XY.,  then  called  Place  de  la 
Concorde. 

The  Court  displayed  a  special  splendor  for  the  occasion, 
even  beyond  its  usual  extravagant  luxury.  The  Empress 
wore  a  gown  entirely  covered  with  gold  embroidery  of  dif- 
ferent shades,  and  wore,  besides  the  Imperial  crown,  pearls 
in  her  hair  to  the  value  of  a  million  francs.  Princess  Bor- 
ghese  shone  with  all  the  Borghese  diamonds  added  to  her 
own,  which  were  priceless ;  Mme.  Murat  wore  rubies ;  Mme. 
Louis  was  almost  covered  with  turquoises  set  in  brilliants ; 
the  new  Queen  of  Naples,  slight  and  delicate-looking,  seemed 
to  bend  beneath  the  weight  of  precious  stones.  I  remember 
that  I  had  a  Court  dress  made  for  the  occasion,  f  although  I 
was  not  usually  among  the  most  brilliantly  dressed  ladies  of 
the  Court.  It  was  of  pink  crape,  spangled  with  silver,  and 
looped  up  with  wreaths  of  jasmine  ;  on  my  hair  was  a  crown 
of  jasmine  and  diamond  wheat-ears.  My  jewels  were  worth 
from  forty  thousand  to  fifty  thousand  francs — far  less  than 
those  of  most  of  our  Court  ladies. 

Princess  Stephanie  had  received  magnificent  gifts  from 
her  husband,  and  still  more  splendid  ones  from  the  Emperor. 
She  wore  a  circlet  of  diamonds  surmounted  with  orange- 
blossom.  Her  court  dress  was  of  white  tulle,  with  silver 
stars  and  sprays  of  orange-blossom.  She  approached  the 
altar  with  much  gracefulness,  and  made  her  deep  courtesies 

*  Nephew  to  the  Prince  Primate,  Arch-Chancellor  of  the  German  Empire, 
f  It  cost  me  sixty  louis. 


MARRIAGE  OF  PRINCESS  STEPHANIE.  429 

so  as  to  charm  the  Emperor  and  every  one  else.  Her  father, 
who  stood  among  the  Senators,  was  moved  to  tears.  His 
position  in  this  ceremony  was  curious,  and  his  feelings  must 
have  been  rather  complex.  The  Order  of  Baden  was  con- 
ferred on  him. 

Tlie  Cardinal  Legate,  Caprara,  solemnized  the  marriage. 
At  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony,  we  returned  from  the 
chapel  to  the  state  apartments  in  the  same  order  as  that  in 
which  we  had  come  down :  the  princes  and  princesses  head- 
ing the  procession,  the  Empress  followed  by  all  her  ladies, 
with  the  Prince  of  Baden  at  her  side,  and  the  Emperor  lead- 
ing the  bride.  He  wore  his  state  costume.  I  have  already 
said  that  it  became  him  well.  Nothing  was  wanting  to  the 
pageantry  of  the  procession  but  a  more  deliberate  step ;  but 
Bonaparte  always  would  walk  fast,  and  he  hurried  us  more 
than  was  dignified  or  desirable. 

The  trains  of  the  princesses  and  queens  and  that  of  the 
Empress  were  borne  by  pages.  As  for  the  rest  of  us,  al- 
though letting  our  trains  fall  would  have  greatly  improved 
our  appearance,  we  were  obliged  to  carry  them  over  one 
arm,  because  their  excessive  length  would  have  caused  far 
too  much  delay  for  the  Emperor's  quick  pace. 

It  frequently  happened  in  state  ceremonials,  and  rendered 
them  less  imposing,  that  the  chamberlains  preceding  him 
would  repeat  in  a  low  tone,  as  they  trod  on  our  heels,  "  Now 
then,  ladies,  please  to  get  on."  The  Countess  d'Arberg,  who 
had  been  at  the  Court  of  the  Archduchess  in  the  Netherlands, 
and  was  accustomed  to  German  etiquette,  was  always  so 
visibly  annoyed  by  this  intimation,  that  we  who  were  used 
to  it  could  not  but  laugh  at  her.  She  used  to  say,  with  some 
humor,  that  we  ought  to  be  called  "  postillions-in- waiting," 
and  that  we  had  better  have  had  short  skirts  given  to  us  than 
the  long  train,  which  was  of  no  use. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  also  was  much  annoyed  by  this  habit, 
as,  in  his  capacity  of  Grand  Chamberlain,  he  had  to  precede 
the  Emperor,  and  he,  on  account  of  a  weakness  of  the  lower 


430  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

limbs,  found  even  slow  walking  difficult.  The  aides-de-camp 
used  to  be  amused  at  his  vexation.  As  for  the  Empress,  this 
was  one  of  the  points  on  which  she  would  not  yield  to  her 
husband.  She  had  a  very  graceful  manner  of  walking,  and 
was  averse  to  hiding  any  of  her  accomplishments ;  therefore 
nothing  could  induce  her  to  hurry.  The  pressure  began 
among  those  who  were  following  her. 

When  we  were  starting  for  the  chapel,  I  recollect  that 
the  Emperor,  who  was  little  used  to  giving  his  hand  to  ladies, 
was  puzzled,  not  knowing  whether  to  offer  his  right  or  his 
left  hand  to  the  bride.  It  was  she  who  had  to  make  the  de- 
cision. 

A  great  reception  was  held  that  day  in  the  state  apart- 
ments ;  there  was  a  concert,  then  a  ballet  and  supper,  as  I 
have  before  described.  The  Queen  of  Naples  having  passed 
next  after  the  Empress,  Bonaparte  placed  his  adopted  daugh- 
ter at  his  right  hand,  above  his  mother.  On  that  evening 
again  Mme.  Murat  had  to  endure  the  great  mortification  of 
passing  through  the  doorways  after  the  young  Princess  of 
Baden. 

The  Court  removed  next  day  to  Malmaison,  and  shortly 
afterward  to  Saint  Cloud.  I  have  already  related  what  oc- 
curred there.  On  the  20th  we  came  back  to  Paris,  to  be 
present  at  a  splendid  fete  given  in  honor  of  the  marriage. 

The  Emperor,  wishing  to  display  his  Court  to  the  Paris- 
ians, allowed  a  considerable  number  of  invitations  to  be  sent 
to  men  and  women  of  every  class.  The  state  apartments 
were  filled  by  an  immense  crowd.*  Two  quadrilles  were 
danced.  One,  in  which  I  took  part,  was  Mme.  Louis  Bona- 
parte's, and  was  performed  with  dance-steps  in  the  Salle  des 
Marechaux.  Sixteen  ladies,  in  groups  of  four,  dressed  in 
white,  their  heads  wreathed  with  flowers  of  different  colors, 
their  dresses  ornamented  with  flowers,  and  with  diamond 
wheat-ears  in  their  hair,  danced  with  sixteen  gentlemen  wear- 

*  There  were  2,500  persons  at  this  ball    Supper  was  served  in  the  State- 
Council  room. 


MAKING  AND   UNMAKING  KINGS.  431 

ing  white  satin  coats,  and  scarfs  corresponding  in  color  to 
their  partners'  flowers.  When  our  dance  was  concluded,  the 
Empress  and  the  Imperial  family  entered  the  Diana  Gallery, 
where  Mme.  Murat  was  at  the  head  of  another  quadrille— 
the  persons  composing  it  being  costumed  as  Spaniards,  with 
hats  and  feathers. 

After  this,  every  one  was  allowed  to  dance — city  and 
Court  together.  Ices  and  refreshments  were  distributed  in 
profusion.  The  Emperor  returned  to  Saint  Cloud,  having 
remained  about  an  hour,  and  spoken  to  a  great  number  of 
persons ;  that  is  to  say,  having  asked  each  one  his  or  her 
name.  Dancing  was  kept  up  after  his  departure  until  morn- 
ing. 

Perhaps  I  have  lingered  too  long  on  these  details,  but 
they  are  a  relief  from  the  serious  narrative  I  have  under- 
taken, and  of  which  my  woman's  pen  becomes  at  times  a 
little  weary. 

While  making  and  unmaking  kings,  according  to  the  ex- 
pression of  M.  de  Fontanes,*  while  giving  his  adopted  daugh- 
ter in  marriage,  and  joining  in  the  festivities  of  which  I  have 
spoken,  the  Emperor  assiduously  attended  the  state  councils, 
hastened  on  their  work,  and  forwarded  daily  a  great  number  of 
laws  to  the  Legislature.  State  Councilor  Treilhard  was  the 
bearer  of  the  code  of  procedure,  completed  during  this  year ; 
many  regulations  were  agreed  to  concerning  trade,  and  the 
session  was  closed  by  a  statement  which  conveyed  grand  ideas 
of  the  flourishing  state  of  our  finances.  Not  an  extra  sou 
was  demanded  from  the  nation  ;  public  works  had  been  ac- 
complished, and  others  were  in  contemplation ;  there  was  a 
formidable  army,  as  was  well  known,  and  only  a  fixed  debt 
of  48,000,000 ;  a  civil  list  of  35,000,000  against  8,000,000  of 
revenue. 

Meanwhile  the  Emperor's  resentment  against  the  Eng- 
lish Government  was  growing  deeper.  The  Cabinet,  which, 
however  changed  in  its  individual  members,  had  not  changed 

*  Speech  of  the  President  of  the  Corps  LSgislatif,  this  year. 
33 


432  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

in  its  policy  toward  us,  declared  war  on  the  King  of  Prussia, 
to  punish  him  for  his  neutrality  in  the  last  war,  and  for  his 
conquest  of  Hanover,  which  he  had  just  taken. 

A  long  article  on  European  politics  appeared  in  the 
"  Moniteur."  The  author  tried  to  prove  that  by  this  rupture 
England  would  accelerate  the  policy  which  must  close  the 
northern  ports  against  her  (the  ports  of  the  south  being 
already  closed),  and  that  she  would  strengthen  the  union  be- 
tween France  and  the  Continent.  The  position  of  Holland 
was  next  fully  discussed.  The  Grand  Pensionary  Schimmel- 
penninck  had,  it  was  reported,  become  blind.  What  would 
be  the  course  taken  by  the  Dutch  ?  It  was  known  that  the 
Emperor  had  not  directly  authorized  the  recent  changes  in 
the  organization  of  that  country,  and  that  he  had  said  on  the 
occasion  that  "the  prosperity  and  liberty  of  nations  could 
only  be  assured  by  one  of  two  systems  of  government — a 
constitutional  monarchy  or  a  republic,  constituted  according 
to  the  principles  of  liberty.  In  Holland  the  Grand  Pension- 
ary exercises  an  important  influence  on  the  elections  of  the 
representatives  of  the  legislative  body ;  this  is  a  radical  vice 
in  the  Constitution.  Nevertheless  all  nations  can  not  with 
impunity  leave  the  choice  of  their  representatives  to  the 
public,  and,  when  there  is  danger  to  be  apprehended  from 
assembling  the  people,  recourse  must  be  had  to  the  principles 
of  a  good  and  wise  monarchy.  This,  perhaps,  is  what  will 
occur  to  the  Dutch.  It  is  for  them  to  appreciate  their  situ- 
ation, and  to  choose  between  the  two  systems  that  one  which 
is  most  likely  to  establish  public  prosperity  and  public  liberty 
on  a  solid  basis."  These  words  were  sufficiently  indicative 
of  what  was  in  store  for  Holland.  The  writer  next  pointed 
out  the  advantages  which  must  result  to  France  from  the 
duchies  of  Cleves  and  Berg  being  occupied  by  a  Frenchman, 
inasmuch  as  our  relations  with  Holland  would  be  better,  and 
that  all  the  countries  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Hhine  would 
be  occupied  by  allies  of  the  Imperial  family. 

The  Prince  of  ISTeufchatel  was  about  to  close  Switzerland 


THE  KINGDOM  OF  NAPLES.  433 

against  English  traders.*  The  Emperor  of  Austria  was  said 
to  be  engaged  in  tending  his  wounds,  and  resolved  on  a  long 
peace.  The  Russians,  still  agitated  by  English  policy,  had 
had  fresh  contests  in  Dalmatia,  being  unwilling  to  give  up 
the  country  situated  near  the  mouth  of  the  Cattaro,  which 
was  in  their  occupation;  but  the  presence  of  the  Grand 
Army,  whose  return  had  been  suspended,  had  compelled 
them  at  length  to  fulfill  the  conditions  of  the  last  treaty. 

The  Pope  was  dismissing  from  Rome  all  persons,,  whether 
English,  Russians,  or  Sardinians,  suspected  of  intriguing,  and 
whose  presence  gave  umbrage  to  the  French  Government. 

The  kingdom  of  Naples  was  almost  entirely  subjugated  ; 
Sicily  was  defended  by  a  mere  handful  of  English.  France 
was  in  close  alliance  with  the  Porte ;  the  Turkish  Govern- 
ment was  less  mercenary  and  less  ignorant  than  had  been 
supposed,  and  understood  that  the  presence  of  the  French  in 
Dalmatia  might  be  most  useful  in  protecting  Turkey  from 
Russian  invasion.  Lastly,  our  army  was  more  formidable 
than  ever,  and  well  able  to  resist  the  attacks  of  a  fourth  coa- 
lition, to  form  which,  after  all,  Europe  was  not  disposed. 

This  sketch  of  our  position  with  regard  to  Europe  could 
only  be  reassuring  to  those  who  took  plausible  phrases  ema- 
nating from  the  highest  quarter  in  their  literal  sense.  It  was 
easy  enough  for  any  one  who  read  them  without  absolute 
credulity  to  perceive  that  the  populations  were  not  so  docile 
as  we  tried  to  make  out ;  that  we  were  beginning  to  sacrifice 
their  interests  to  our  own  policy ;  that  England,  angered  by 
failure,  was  bent  on  raising  up  new  enemies  for  us  ;  that  the 
King  of  Prussia  was  selling  us  his  friendship ;  and  that  Russia 
was  still  threatening  us.  Men  no  longer  believed  in  the 
pacific  intentions  which  the  Emperor  announced  in  all  his 
speeches.  But  there  was  something  so  impressive  in  his 
plans,  his  military  talent  was  so  abundantly  proved,  he  be- 

*  The  town  of  Basel,  alarmed  by  the  threats  of  the  French  Government, 
declined  all  commerce  with  England.  The  Queen  of  Etruria,  who  was  but  ill 
established  on  her  throne,  did  the  same. 


434:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

stowed  such  greatness  on  France,  that,  duped  by  her  own 
glory,  forced  as  she  was  to  bend  beneath  the  yoke,  she  con- 
sented also  to  be  beguiled  by  the  enchanter.  Moreover,  the 
internal  prosperity  of  the  country  had  apparently  increased ; 
there  was  no  augmentation  of  taxes ;  everything  contributed 
to  dazzle  us,  and  not  one  of  us,  acted  upon  as  we  were  by 
the  impulsion  which  Bonaparte  had  given  us  all,  had  either 
the  leisure  or  the  will  for  serious  reflection.  The  Emperor 
used  to  say,  "  Luxury  and  glory  have  never  failed  to  turn  the 
heads  of  the  French." 

Shortly  after,  we  were  told  that  a  great  council  had  been 
held  at  the  Hague  by  the  representatives  of  the  Batavian 
people,  at  which  affairs  of  the  highest  importance  had  been 
discussed;  and  a  rumor  was  allowed  to  spread  that  a  new 
Dutch  monarchy  was  about  to  be  founded. 

Meanwhile,  the  English  newspapers  were  full  of  criticisms 
on  the  progress  which  the  Imperial  power  was  making  in 
Europe.  "If  Bonaparte,"  they  said,  "succeeds  in  accom- 
plishing his  system  of  a  Federal  Empire,  France  will  become 
the  sovereign  arbiter  of  almost  the  whole  continent."  He 
was  delighted  at  this  prediction,  and  resolutely  strove  to 
realize  it. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  at  that  time  in  great  repute,  used  his 
influence  in  Europe  to  gain  over  the  foreign  Ministers.  He 
asked  for  and  obtained  from  the  sovereigns  exactly  those 
ambassadors  whom  he  knew  he  could  make  amenable.  For 
instance,  he  obtained  from  Prussia  the  Marquis  de  Lucche- 
sini,*  who  subsequently  acted  in  the  French  interest,  against 
his  own  master.  He  was  a  clever  man,  of  a  somewhat  schem- 
ing disposition.  He  was  born  at  Lucca,  but  a  taste  for  trav- 

*  It  might  be  inferred  from  this  passage  that  Lucchesini  was  ambassador  at 
Paris  only  from  this  period ;  he  had,  however,  filled  that  post  at  the  time  of  the 
Peace  of  Amiens.  But  he  had  not  always  supported  the  interests  of  France, 
and,  although  he  was  in  personal  relations  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  he  belonged 
rather  to  the  English  party,  as  we  shall  describe  in  chapter  xxi.,  and  his  reports 
aroused  a  hostile  feeling  in  Prussia  against  us. — P.  R. 


AMBASSADOR  FROM  THE  PORTE.  435 

eling  took  him  in  his  youth  to  Berlin,  where  he  was  received 
by  Frederick  the  Great,  who,  liking  his  conversation  and  his 
philosophical  principles,  kept  him  near  his  own  person,  gave 
him  a  place  at  Court,  and  founded  his  fortunes.  He  was  sub- 
sequently intrusted  with  Prussian  affairs,  became  a  person  of 
importance,  and  had  sufficient  luck  and  ability  to  remain  long 
in  high  repute.  He  married  a  Prussian  lady,  and  both  he 
and  his  wife,  when  they  came  to  France,  devoted  themselves 
to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  made  use  of  them  to  further  his 
own  ends.  It  was  long  before  the  King  of  Prussia  found 
out  that  his  ambassador  had  joined  in  the  plots  against  him, 
and  Lucchesini  did  not  fall  into  disgrace  until  some  years 
later.  The  Marquis  then  repaired  to  Italy,  and  found  a  fresh 
field  for  his  ambition  in  the  influence  he  obtained  over  the 
sovereign  of  Lucca,  who  had  become  Grand  Duchess  of  Tus- 
cany. The  events  of  1814  caused  his  downfall  to  follow  on 
that  of  his  mistress.  The  Marchesa  de  Lucchesini,  who  was 
rather  addicted  to  coquetry,  was  while  in  Paris  one  of  the 
most  obsequious  of  Madame  de  Talleyrand's  friends. 

On  the  5th  of  June  the  Emperor  received  an  Ambassa- 
dor Extraordinary  from  the  Porte,  with  messages  of  con- 
gratulation and  friendship  from  the  Sultan.  These  messages 
were  accompanied  by  magnificent  presents  of  diamonds,  a 
pearl  necklace  worth  eighty  thousand  francs,  perfumes,  innu- 
merable shawls,  and  Arab  horses,  with  housings  adorned 
with  precious  stones.  The  Emperor  gave  the  necklace  to 
his  wife,  and  distributed  the  diamonds  and  the  shawls  among 
the  ladies-in-waiting.  Some  were  given  also  to  the  wives  of 
ministers  and  marshals,  and  to  a  few  others.  The  Empress 
reserved  the  finest  for  herself,  and  there  yet  remained  enough 
to  be  used  afterward  for  the  decoration  of  a  boudoir  at  Com- 
piegne,  which  Josephine  had  arranged  for  herself  with  spe- 
cial care,  but  which  was  never  used  except  by  the  Empress 
Marie  Louise. 

On  the  same  day  the  Envoy  from  Holland  came  to  an- 
nounce that  it  had  been  decided  at  the  Hague,  upon  mature 


436  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

deliberation,  that  a  constitutional  monarchy  was  the  only 
form  of  government  that  would  thenceforth  be  suitable  for 
Holland,  because  such  a  monarchy  would  harmonize  with 
the  principles  now  spreading  in  Europe ;  and  that,  in  order 
to  consolidate  it,  they  solicited  Louis  Napoleon,  the  Empe- 
ror's brother,  to  become  their  first  King. 

Bonaparte  replied  that  such  a  monarchy  would  doubtless 
be  profitable  to  the  general  policy  of  Europe,  and  that,  by 
removing  anxieties  of  his  own,  it  would  enable  him  to  de- 
liver important  places  into  the  hands  of  the  Dutch,  which 
hitherto  he  had  felt  it  his  duty  to  retain.  Then,  turning 
toward  his  brother,  he  enjoined  him  to  have  a  care  of  the 
people  intrusted  to  him. 

This  scene  was  well  acted.  Louis  made  a  fitting  reply. 
On  the  audience  coming  to  an  end,  the  doors  were  flung 
open,  as  on  the  occasion  when  Louis  XIY.  accepted  the  suc- 
cession to  Spain,  and  the  new  King  of  Holland  was  an- 
nounced to  the  assembled  Court. 

Immediately  on  this,  the  Arch-Chancellor  carried  to  the 
Senate,  according  to  custom,  the  new  Imperial  message,  and 
made  the  usual  speech. 

The  Emperor  guaranteed  to  his  brother  the  integrity  of 
his  states,  and  that  his  children  should  succeed  him ;  but  the 
crowns  of  France  and  of  Holland  were  never  to  be  united 
on  one  head. 

In  the  case  of  a  minority,  the  Queen  was  to  be  regent, 
and  failing  her,  the  Emperor  of  the  French,  in  right  of  his 
position  as  perpetual  head  of  the  Imperial  family,  was  to 
appoint  a  regent,  whom  he  was  to  select  from  among  the 
princes  of  the  royal  family  or  among  the  Dutch  nation. 

The  King  of  Holland  was  to  remain  Constable  of  the 
Empire,  a  Yice-Constable  to  be  created  at  the  Emperor's 
pleasure. 

The  message  also  contained  an  announcement  to  the  Sen- 
ate that  the  Arch-Chancellor  of  the  German  Empire  had 
asked  of  the  P'ope  that  Cardinal  Fesch  might  be  designated 


QUEEN  HORTENSE.  43Y 

as  his  coadjutor  and  successor ;  and  that  His  Holiness  had 
informed  the  Emperor  of  this  request,  who  had  approved  of 
it. 

"  Lastly,  the  duchies  of  Benevento  and  of  Ponte  Corvo 
being  a  subject  of  litigation  between  the  Courts  of  Naples 
and  Home,  in  order  to  put  an  end  to  these  difficulties,  and 
reserving  to  ourselves  the  indemnification  of  these  Courts, 
we  erect  them,"  says  the  decree,  "  into  duchies  and  fiefs  of 
the  Empire,  and  we  bestow  them  on  our  Grand  Chamberlain 
Talleyrand,  and  on  our  cousin  Marshal  Bernadotte,  to  reward 
them  for  services  rendered  to  the  country.  They  will  bear 
the  titles  of  these  duchies,  they  will  take  an  oath  to  serve  us 
as  faithful  and  loyal  subjects,  and,  if  their  issue  should  fail, 
we  reserve  to  ourselves  the  right  of  disposing  of  those  prin- 
cipalities." Bonaparte  had  no  great  liking  for  Marshal  Ber- 
nadotte ;  he  probably  felt  bound  to  promote  him  because  he 
had  married  the  sister  of  Joseph  Bonaparte's  wife,  and  it 
seemed  fitting  that  the  sister  of  a  Queen  should  be  at  least 
a  Princess. 

It  is  unnecessary  for  me  to  add  that  the  Senate  approved 
of  all  these  proceedings. 

On  the  day  following  the  ceremonial  which  introduced 
another  King  into  Bonaparte's  family  circle,  we  were  at 
breakfast  with  the  Empress,  when  her  husband  entered  the 
room,  looking  extremely  pleased,  and  holding  little  Napoleon 
by  the  hand.  He  addressed  us  all  in  these  terms  :  "  Mes- 
dames,  here  is  a  little  boy  who  is  going  to  recite  to  you  one 
of  La  Fontaine's  fables.  I  made  him  learn  it  this  morning, 
and  you  shall  hear  how  well  he  knows  it."  On  this  the 
child  began  to  repeat  the  fable  of  the  frogs  who  asked  f9r  a 
king,  and  the  Emperor  laughed  loudly  at  each  allusion  that 
seemed  applicable  to  the  circumstances.  He  stood  behind 
Mme.  Louis's  arm-chair — she  was  seated  at  table  opposite  her 
mother — and  pinched  her  ears  as  he  asked  her  over  and  over 
again,  "  What  do  you  say  to  that,  Hortense  ?  "  No  one  said 
much  in  reply.  I  was  smiling  to  myself  as  I  ate  my  break- 


438  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

fast,  and  the  Emperor,  in  high  good  humor,  said  to  me, 
laughing  also,  "  I  see  that  Mme.  de  Remusat  thinks  I  am 
giving  Napoleon  a  good  education." 

Louis's  acquisition  of  a  kingdom  revealed  to  his  brother 
the  deplorable  state  of  his  domestic  affairs.  Mme.  Louis 
could  not  contemplate  her  accession  to  a  throne  without  bit- 
ter weeping.  The  ungenial  climate  to  which  she  was  about 
to  remove,  which  must  needs  aggravate  the  wretched  state 
of  her  health ;  the  dread  she  felt  of  living  alone  with  her 
tyrannical  husband  ;  his  increasing  dislike  of  her,  which  did 
not  lessen  his  jealousy,  although  it  deprived  it  of  rational 
excuse — all  these  things  made  her  resolve  to  open  her  heart 
to  the  Emperor.  She  confided  her  sorrows  to  him,  and  pre- 
pared him  for  the  fresh  troubles  that  no  doubt  awaited  her. 
She  entreated  his  protection  in  the  future,  and  exacted  from 
him"  a  promise  never  to  judge  her  unheard.  She  went  so  far 
as  to  tell  him  that,  foreseeing  the  persecution  she  would  have 
to  endure  in  the  isolation  to  which  she  would  be  subjected, 
her  mind  was  made  up  that  when  she  should  have  endured 
up  to  a  certain  point  she  would  leave  the  world  and  retire 
to  a  convent,  relinquishing  a  crown  of  which  she  could  al- 
ready feel  the  thorns. 

The  Emperor  entreated  her  to  have  courage  and  patience ; 
he  promised  to  protect  her,  and  directed  her  to  advise  with 
him  before  taking  any  decisive  step. 

I  can  bear  witness  that  this  unhappy  lady  ascended  the 
throne  in  the  spirit  of  a  victim  resigning  herself  to  sacrifice. 


CHAPTEE  XXI. 

(1806.) 

I  go  to  Cauterets— The  King  of  Holland— Factitious  Tranquillity  of  France— M.  de 
Metternich — The  New  Catechism — The  Germanic  Confederation — Poland — 
Death  of  Mr.  Fox — War  is  declared — Departure  of  the  Emperor — M.  Pasquier 
and  M.  Mote— Session  of  the  Senate— The  Opening  of  Hostilities— The  Court— 
Eeception  of  Cardinal  Maury. 

IN  the  June  of  this  year  I  went  to  take  the  waters  at 
Cauterets,  and  remained  away  three  months.  I  was  in  very 
delicate  health,  and  needed  a  respite  from  Court  life  and 
from  the  daily  anxieties  which  were  wearing  alike  to  mind 
and  body.  My  family — that  is  to  say,  my  husband,  my 
mother,  and  my  children — were  settled  at  Auteuil,  whence 
M.  de  Kemusat  could  easily  get  to  Saint  Cloud,  and  there 
they  passed  a  happy  and  peaceful  summer.  Our  Court  was 
then  in  solitude  ;  the  sovereigns  of  Holland  had  taken  their 
departure,  and  the  members  of  Bonaparte's  family  had  sepa- 
rate establishments.  The  Emperor  was  engrossed  by  the 
gathering  clouds  in  Europe,  and  was  constantly  at  work ;  his 
wife  employed  her  leisure  in  beautifying  her  estate  of  Mal- 
maison. 

The  "  Moniteur  "  contained  glowing  accounts  of  the  tri- 
umphal entries  of  the  princes  created  by  Bonaparte  into  their 
respective  states.  Enthusiasm  was  said  to  be  at  the  highest 
at  Naples,  at  Berg,  at  Baden,  and  in  Holland,  and  the  popu- 
lace was  delighted  everywhere.  The  speeches  of  the  new 
kings  or  princes,  in  which  they  treated  their  subjects  to  a 
pompous  panegyric  of  the  great  man  whose  envoys  they 


440  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

were,  were  published  for  our  edification.  It  is  certain  that, 
at  first,  Louis  Bonaparte  found  favor  with  the  Dutch.  His 
wife  shared  his  popularity  in  it,  and  displayed  such  affability 
that  very  soon,  as  I  heard  from  some  French  people  who  ac- 
companied them,  her  strange  husband  became  jealous  of  the 
affection  she  inspired. 

Like  his  brother,  Louis  was  intolerant  of  the  least  inde- 
pendence in  others.  After  exacting  that  the  Queen  should 
hold  a  brilliant  Court,  he  suddenly  changed  his  mind,  and 
reduced  her  by  degrees  to  a  very  solitary  life,  thus  isolating 
her  from  the  people  over  whom  she  too  had  been  appointed 
to  reign.  If  I  may  believe  the  accounts  I  have  received  from 
persons  who  coiild  have  had  no  motive  for  inventing  them, 
he  resumed  his  distrustful  jealousy  and  his  system  of  spying, 
and  the  Queen  was  constantly  subjected  to  insult.  The  poor 
young  creature,  in  a  state  of  chronic  ill  health  and  profound 
melancholy,  perceived  that  it  was  not  her  husband's  pleasure 
that  she  should  share  the  affection  he  hoped  to  inspire  in  his 
Dutch  subjects.  Sorrow  had  made  her  indifferent  to  such 
things ;  she  withdrew  into  the  solitude  of  her  palace,  where 
she  lived  almost  as  a  prisoner,  devoting  herself  to  the  arts 
she  loved,  and  indulging  her  excessive  affection  for  her  eldest 
boy.  The  child,  who  was  forward  for  his  age,  greatly  loved 
his  mother,  to  the  extreme  jealousy  of  Louis.  The  latter 
would  sometimes  try  to  obtain  his  preference  by  indulgence 
carried  to  excess ;  sometimes  he  would  alarm  him  by  out- 
breaks of  passion,  and  the  boy  clung  the  more  to  her,  who 
always  loved  and  never  frightened  him.  Men  were  found — 
and  such  as  are  always  to  be  found  in  courts — who,  for  hire, 
undertook  to  watch  the  Queen  and  report  her  every  action. 
The  letters  she  wrote  were  opened,  lest  they  might  contain 
any  allusion  to  events  in  her  husband's  dominions.  She  has 
assured  me  that  more  than  once  she  found  her  desk  open  and 
her  papers  upset,  and  that,  if  she  had  chosen,  she  might  have 
detected  the  King's  spies  in  the  act  of  carrying  out  his  in- 
structions. It  was  soon  perceived  at  the  Dutch  Court  that 


THE  KING   OF  HOLLAND.  441 

to  appear  to  be  influenced  in  any  way  by  the  Queen  was  to 
lose  one's  own  chances  of  favor,  and  on  this  she  was  imme- 
diately forsaken.  Any  unfortunate  person  addressing  himself 
to  her,  in  order  to  solicit  a  favor,  would  be  immediately  sus- 
pected ;  any  minister  conversing  with  her  on  the  most  trifling 
matter  would  fall  under  the  King's  displeasure.  The  damp 
climate  of  Holland  aggravated  her  ailments ;  she  fell  into  a 
state  of  atrophy  perceptible  to  every  one,  but  which  the  King 
did  not  choose  at  first  to  notice.  She  has  told  me  that  her 
life  at  this  time  was  so  hard  and  seemed  so  hopeless,  that  fre- 
quently, when  residing  at  one  of  her  country-houses  not  far 
from  the  sea,  and  gazing  at  the  ocean  stretched  out  before 
her,  and  English  vessels  blockading  the  harbors,  she  ardently 
wished  that  some  chance  would  bring  one  of  them  to  the 
coast,  and  that  some  partial  invasion  might  be  attempted,  in 
which  she  would  have  been  made  a  prisoner.  At  last  her 
physicians  ordered  her  to  Aix-la-Chapelle,  and  the  King  him- 
self, who  was  out  of  health,  resolved  on  taking  the  waters 
there  with  her. 

From  this  time  Holland  began  to  suffer  from  the  pro- 
hibitive system  which  the  Emperor  imposed  on  everything 
appertaining  to  the  Empire.  It  must  be  conceded  to  Louis 
Bonaparte  that  he  promptly  defended  the  interests  of  the 
people  confided  to  him,  and  opposed  the  tyrannical  measures 
forced  on  him  by  the  Imperial  policy  as  strongly  as  was  in 
his  power.  He  bore  with  firmness  the  Emperor's  reproaches 
on  the  subject,  and  resisted  him  in  such  a  manner  as  to  gain 
the  affection  of  the  Dutch.  In  this  they  did  him  justice. 

Switzerland  also  was  compelled  to  decline  all  trade  with 
England,  and  English  goods  were  seized  everywhere.  These 
measures  served  to  strengthen  the  party  in  London  who  were 
anxious  to  force  France  into  fresh  European  wars  at  any 
price.  Mr.  Fox,  who  was  then  Prime  Minister,  seemed, 
however,  to  lean  toward  peace,  and  to  be  willing  to  receive 
overtures  of  negotiation.  During  the  summer  he  was  at- 
tacked by  the  illness  which  subsequently  proved  fatal  to  him, 


44:2  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

and  his  influence  declined.  The  Kussians  were  still  contend- 
ing with  our  troops  for  the  possession  of  certain  parts  of 
Dalmatia.  The  Grand  Army  showed  no  sign  of  returning 
to  France ;  the  promised  fetes  were  constantly  deferred. 

The  King  of  Prussia  was  inclined  to  peace,  but  his  young 
and  lovely  consort,  as  well  as  Prince  Louis  of  Prussia  and  a 
part  of  the  Court,  did  all  they  could  to  incite  him  to  war. 
They  pointed  out  to  him  that  the  future  had  in  store  the 
liberation  of  Poland,  the  aggrandizement  of  Saxony,  the 
danger  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Khine  being  organized ; 
and  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  Emperor's  line  of  conduct 
was  a  justification  for  the  disquiet  of  Europe. 

English  policy  was  by  degrees  regaining  its  influence  over 
the  Emperor  of  Russia.  Count  Woronzoff  had  been  sent  to 
London,  and  he  fell  so  completely  under  the  influence  ex- 
erted over  him  that  the  Continent  was  again  disturbed.  The 
Czar  had  sent  Baron  d'Oubril  to  Paris,  to  negotiate  with  us, 
and  a  treaty  of  peace  was  in  fact  signed  by  him  and  M.  de 
Talleyrand  on  the  20th  of  July,  but,  as  will  be  seen  hereafter, 
it  was  never  ratified  at  St.  Petersburg. 

About  this  time  General  Junot  was  made  Governor  of 
Paris. 

France  was  in  a  state  of  profound  tranquillity.  Day  by 
day  the  Emperor  met  with  less  opposition.  A  firm,  equable, 
and  strict  administration,  which  was  just,  inasmuch  as  it  was 
equal  for  all,  regulated  both  the  exercise  of  authority  and 
the  mode  of  supporting  it.  Conscription  was  rigorously  en- 
forced, but  as  yet  the  murmurs  of  the  people  were  but  faint ; 
the  French  had  not  then  exhaused  the  sentiment  of  glory,  as 
they  have  done  since  that  time,  and,  moreover,  the  brilliant 
possibilities  of  a  military  career  fascinated  the  youth  of 
France,  and  they  all  espoused  the  cause  of  Bonaparte.  Even 
in  the  families  of  the  nobility,  who  were,  on  principle  or 
from  habit,  in  opposition,  the  political  creed  of  the  fathers 
was  less  firmly  held  by  the  children,  and  parents  were  per- 
haps, in  their  secret  heart,  not  sorry  to  relax  somewhat  of 


FACTITIOUS  TRANQUILLITY  OF  FRANCE.        443 

their  severity  on  the  plea  of  paternal  concession.  Nor  was 
any  opportunity  overlooked  of  indicating  that  the  nation 
had  returned  to  the  natural  course  and  order  of  things. 

The  feast  of  the  15th  of  August  having  become  that  of 
St.  Napoleon,  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  wrote  a  circular 
letter  to  all  the  prefects,  recommending  them  to  combine  in 
the  solemnization  of  the  fete  rejoicings  for  both  the  birthday 
of  the  Emperor  and  the  reestablishment  of  religion.  "  No 
holiday,"  said  the  letter,  "  can  inspire  deeper  feelings  than 
that  in  which  a  great  people,  in  the  pride  of  victory  and  the 
consciousness  of  happiness,  celebrates  the  birthday  of  the 
sovereign  to  whom  all  its  felicity  and  glory  are  to  be  as- 
cribed." 

It  ought  to  be  constantly  repeated,  as  well  for  the  sake 
of  nations  to  come  as  for  the  sake  of  those  who  are  called  to 
reign  over  them,  that  both  peoples  and  kings  who  allow 
themselves  to  be  deceived  by  an  appearance  of  calm,  after 
the  storm  of  a  revolution,  are  in  the  wrong.  If  this  time  of 
peace  has  not  called  into  existence  an  order  of  things  in- 
dicated by  national  needs,  then  it  is  fallacious  calm,  a  respite 
resulting  from  circumstances — of  which  a  clever  man  will 
indeed  avail  himself,  but  which  he  will  not  really  utilize  un- 
less he  prudently  regulates  the  advance  of  those  who  have 
trusted  him.  Far  from  so  acting,  Bonaparte,  powerful  and 
headstrong,  opened,  as  it  were,  a  long  parenthesis  in  the 
French  Revolution.  He  always  had  a  conviction  that  this 
parenthesis  would  be  closed  at  his  death,  which  to  him 
seemed  the  only  possible  limit  to  his  fortune. 

He  seized  the  reins  of  France  when  Frenchmen  were 
wandering  bewildered  in  every  direction,  and  were  fearful 
that  they  should  never  reach  the  goal  to  which  they  aspired. 
Their  energies,  which  were  vague  because  they  no  longer 
ventured  to  undertake  any  kind  of  enterprise  boldly,  were 
then  turned  into  military  ardor,  which  is  the  most  dangerous 
of  any,  because  the  most  opposed  to  the  true  citizen  spirit. 
For  a  long  while  Bonaparte  reaped  the  advantage  of  this, 


444  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

but  he  did  not  foresee  that,  in  order  to  rule  after  his  fashion 
a  nation  which  for  a  time  had  become  distrustful  of  its  own 
strength,  and  which  yet  felt  the  need  of  a  great  restoration, 
it  was  imperative  that  victory  should  always  follow  on  war, 
and  that  reverses  must  inevitably  make  man  reflect  in  a 
direction  dangerous  for  himself. 

He  was,  I  believe,  hurried  along  by  the  force  of  circum- 
stances, resulting  from  the  events  of  every  day.  But  he  was 
determined  to  check  the  growth  of  liberty  at  any  cost,  and 
to  this  end  he  directed  all  his  efforts.  It  has  been  frequently 
said,  both  during  tjie  Empire  and  after  his  fall,  that  he  un- 
derstood the  science  of  governing  better  than  any  other  man. 
This  is  the  case,  doubtless,  if  it  be  only  understood  as  the 
knowledge  of  means  whereby  to  enforce  obedience ;  but  if 
the  word  "  science  "  includes  "  the  clear  and  certain  knowl- 
edge of  a  thing,  founded  on  principles  either  self-evident  or 
proved  to  demonstration,"  *  then  it  is  certain  that  in  Bona- 
parte's system  of  government  there  was  no  place  for  those 
elements  which  manifest  the  esteem  of  the  sovereign  for  his 
subjects.  He  by  no  means  recognized  the  concession  of  cer- 
tain rights  which  every  man  who  intends  to  rule  other  men 
for  any  length  of  time  must  begin  by  making  to  them,  lest, 
weary  of  their  mental  inaction,  they  should  one  day  claim 
these  rights  for  themselves.  He  did  not  know  how  to  stir 
generous  passion,  or  to  appreciate  and  evoke  moral  virtues, 
and  thus  to  elevate  himself  in  proportion  as  he  aggrandized 
human  nature. 

Singular  in  every  respect,  he  believed  himself  to  be  vast- 
ly superior  to  the  rest  of  the  world,  and  nevertheless  he  was 
afraid  of  superiority  in  others.  Is  there  one  among  those 
who  knew  him  well  who  has  not  heard  him  say  that  he  pre- 
ferred men  of  second-rate  abilities  ?  Is  there  one  who  has 
not  remarked  that  when  he  made  use  of  a  man  of  talent,  of 
whatever  kind,  he  would,  before  he  felt  he  could  trust  him, 
find  out  his  weak  point,  and  in  most  cases  hasten  to  divulge 
*  This  definition  is  given  in  the  Encyclopedia. 


•     COUNT  METTERNICH.  445 

it  ?  Did  lie  not  always  depreciate,  and  often  falsely,  those 
whose  services  he  employed?  The  truth  is,  Bonaparte's 
gifts,  whether  to  the  world,  to  nations,  or  to  individuals, 
were  all  bargains.  These  bargains,  which  were  enforced 
rather  than  offered,  flattered  the  vanity  of  human  nature, 
and  thus  for  a  long  time  beguiled  men's  minds,  so  that  it  is 
now  hard  to  reduce  them  to  bounds  of  possibility  and  rea- 
son. Such  a  policy  as  this  may  certainly  avail  to  purchase 
service  of  every  kind,  but  it  follows  that  it  must  be  based  on 
unvarying  success.  Are  we  to  conclude  from  this  that  the 
French  were  unpardonably  guilty,  because  they  fell  into  the 
power  of  such  a  man?  Will  posterity  condemn  them  for 
their  imprudent  trust  in  him  ?  I  think  not. 

Bonaparte,  who  employed  good  or  evil  things  indiffer- 
ently, according  as  they  served  his  purpose,  understood  thor- 
oughly that  no  secure  foundations  can  be  laid  in  times  of 
trouble.  He  therefore  began  by  restoring  order,  and  it  was 
thus  he  won  us,  poor  tired  wayfarers  that  we  were,  battered 
by  many  a  storm !  That  which  he  created  for  his  own  profit 
only  we  accepted  gratefully ;  the  social  order  which  was  re- 
stored by  him,  that  it  might  become  the  groundwork  of  his 
despotic  sway,  we  regarded  as  the  greatest  of  his  gifts,  and 
as  the  pledge  of  other  benefits.  We  believed  that  the  man 
who  reestablished  public  morality,  religion,  and  civilization, 
who  patronized  art  and  literature,  and  who  undertook  to  re- 
duce society  to  order,  must  have  a  soul  capable  of  true  great- 
ness ;  and  perhaps,  after  all,  our  error,  which  was  deplorable 
because  it  served  his  purposes  so  long,  proves  the  generosity 
of  our  sentiments  rather  than  our  imprudence. 

Until  Prussia  declared  war,  no  event  of  any  importance 
took  place.  In  the  course  of  the  summer  Count  Metternich, 
the  Austrian  Ambassador,  arrived  in  Paris.  He  occupied  an 
important  position  in  Europe,  took  part  in  events  of  the 
highest  importance,  and  finally  made  an  enormous  fortune ; 
but  his  abilities  did  not  rise  above  the  schemes  of  a  second- 
rate  policy.  At  the  period  of  which  I  am  speaking  he  was 


446  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

young,  good-looking,  and  popular  with  women.  A  little 
later  he  formed  an  attachment  to  Mme.  Murat,  and  he 
retained  a  feeling  toward  her  which  for  a  long  time 
aided  to  keep  her  husband  on  the  throne  of  Naples,  and 
which  probably  is  still  of  service  to  her  in  her  retire- 
ment.* 

In  the  month  of  August  a  decree  which  settled  the  new 
catechism  of  the  Gallican  Church  was  promulgated.  It  was 
entitled  "  Bossuet's  Catechism,"  and  it  contained,  together 
with  doctrines  taken  from  the  works  of  the  Bishop  of  Meaux, 
some  remarkable  utterances  on  the  duties  of  French  people 
toward  their  Emperor. 

Page  55 :  "  Question.  "What  are  the  duties  of  Christians 
toward  their  rulers ;  and  what,  in  particular,  are  our  duties 
toward  Napoleon  I.,  our  Emperor  ? 

"Answer.  Christians  owe  to  the  princes  who  govern 
them,  and  we,  in  particular,  owe  to  Napoleon  I.,  our  Em- 
peror, love,  respect,  obedience,  fidelity,  military  service,  and 
the  tributes  ordained  for  the  preservation  and  defense  of  the 
Empire  and  of  his  throne.  To  honor  and  serve  our  Emperor 
is,  therefore,  to  honor  and  to  serve  God. 

"  Q.  Are  there  any  special  reasons  which  should  more 
strongly  attach  us  to  our  Emperor  Napoleon  I.  ? 

"  A.  Yes ;  for  it  is  he  whom  God  raised  up  in  difficult 
circumstances  to  restore  the  public  profession  of  the  holy 
religion  of  our  forefathers,  and  to  be  its  protector.  He  has 
restored  public  order  by  his  profound  and  active  wisdom ; 
he  defends  the  state  by  his  powerful  arm,  and  he  has  be- 
come the  anointed  of  the  Lord  through  the  consecration 
of  the  Sovereign  Pontiff,  the  Head  of  the  Universal 
Church. 

"  Q-  What  ought  we  to  think  of  such  persons  as  may  fail 
in  their  duties  toward  our  Emperor  ? 

"A.   According  to  the  Apostle  St.  Paul,  they  would 

*  At  the  present  date  (1819)  she  is  living  in  the  states  of  the  Emperor  of 
Austria.     (She  died  at  Florence  on  the  18th  of  May,  1839.— P.  R.) 


THE  GERMANIC  CONFEDERATION.  447 

thereby  be  resisting  the  orders  of  God  Himself,  and  would 
become  worthy  of  eternal  damnation."  * 

During  Mr.  Fox's  tenure  of  office,  Bonaparte,  either  from 
private  information,  or  because  he  perceived  the  policy  of 
the  Prime  Minister  to  be  opposed  to  that  of  his  predecessor, 
flattered  himself  that  he  should  be  able  to  conclude  a  treaty 
of  peace  with  England.  Besides  the  advantages  to  be  gained 
from  this,  his  pride  was  always  singularly  mortified  that  the 
English  Government  did  not  acknowledge  him  as  a  sovereign. 
The  title  of  "  General,"  which  the  English  newspapers  gave 
him,  always  annoyed  him  extremely.  Notwithstanding  his 
greatness,  he  had  some  of  the  weaknesses  of  a  parvenu. 
When  Fox  fell  ill,  the  "  Moniteur  "  announced  that  there  was 
reason  to  fear  that  the  gravity  of  his  malady  might  throw  Eng- 
lish policy  back  once  more  into  its  ordinary  complications. 

Meanwhile,  the  design  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine 
was  suddenly  disclosed.  In  the  Emperor's  grand  feudal  plan 
this  was  comprised :  it  would  increase  the  number  of  the 
feudatories  of  the  French  Empire,  and  spread  the  European 
revolution.  But  if  it  be  true  that  the  old  institutions  of  the 
Continent  have  reached  a  point  at  which  their  decrepitude 
gives  irresistible  warning  of  the  necessity  of  their  fall,  it  is 
also  true  that  the  time  has  come  when  their  fall  is  not  to  be 
for  the  advantage  of  despotism.  Bonaparte  never  ceased 
trying  to  make  a  counter-revolution,  solely  in  his  own  inter- 
ests, against  those  ideas  which  emerged  into  the  light  of  day 
thirty  years  ago.  Such  an  undertaking  is,  happily,  beyond 
the  power  of  man ;  and  we  owe  it  to  him,  at  least,  that  his 
failure  to  accomplish  that  reaction  settled  for  ever  this  im- 
portant question. 

*  "Were  we  then  to  believe,"  asks  Mme.  de  Stael,  "that  Bonaparte  could 
award  hell  in  the  next  world,  because  he  gave  the  idea  of  it  in  this  ?  "  There  is 
some  exaggeration  in  this  remark ;  but  the  following  seems  to  me  to  be  extreme- 
ly accurate :  "  Nations  have  sincere  piety  only  in  those  countries  where  one  may 
love  God  and  the  Christian  religion  with  one's  whole  soul  without  losing,  and 
especially  without  obtaining,  any  worldly  advantage  by  the  manifestation  of  that 
sentiment." 

34 


448  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

The  grand  duchies  of  Germany  were  therefore  separated 
from  the  Germanic  Empire,  and  the  Emperor  of  France  was 
declared  to  be  their  protector.  The  contracting  parties — 
that  is  to  say,  the  Empire  and  the  confederated  states — en- 
gaged to  take  up  arms  in  the  case  of  war  being  declared  on 
one  or  the  other.  The  contingent  of  the  Confederation  was 
named  at  63,000  men,  that  of  France  at  200,000.  The  Elec- 
tor Arch-Chancellor  of  the  Germanic  Empire  became  Prince 
Primate  of  the  Confederation;  on  his  death  the  Emperor 
was  to  nominate  his  successor.  Moreover,  the  Emperor  re- 
newed the  declaration  by  which  he  bound  himself  not  to 
extend  the  frontiers  of  France  above  the  Rhine ;  but,  at  the 
same  time,  he  declared  that  he  would  use  every  means  to 
procure  the  freedom  of  the  seas.  This  appeared  in  the 
"Moniteur"  of  the  25th  of  July. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  had  a  large  share  in  the  honor  of  form- 
ing this  Confederation.  He  was  in  very  high  repute  at  this 
time.  He  seemed  destined  to  reduce  the  wide  and  ambitious 
projects  of  the  Emperor  to  a  definite  system;  but,  at  the 
same  time,  he  did  not  neglect  the  increase  to  his  own  fortune 
which  was  to  be  got  out  of  them.  The  German  princes  paid, 
as  a  matter  of  course,  for  slight  advantages  obtained  by  them 
in  the  arrangement ;  and  the  name  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  being 
always  connected  with  such  important  negotiations,  became 
more  and  more  renowned  throughout  Europe. 

One  of  his  favorite  theories,  and  it  is  one  which  has  al- 
ways seemed  just  and  reasonable,  is  that  the  policy  of  France 
ought  to  tend  to  the  release  of  Poland  from  a  foreign  yoke, 
and  to  the  use  of  that  country  as  a  barrier  against  Russia  and 
a  counterpoise  to  Austria.  He  always  exerted  his  influence 
in  this  direction.  I  have  often  heard  him  say  that  the  repose 
of  all  Europe  depended  on  Poland.  It  would  appear  that 
the  Emperor  was  of  the  same  opinion,  but  that  he  did  not 
persevere  sufficiently  in  endeavoring  to  realize  this  project. 
Accidental  circumstances  also  interfered  with  it.  He  often 
complained  of  the  passionate,  yet  shallow,  character  of  the 


POLAND.  449 

Poles.  "  It  was  impossible,"  he  said,  "  to  guide  them  on  any 
system."  They  required  special  and  exclusive  attention,  and 
Bonaparte  could  only  think  of  Poland  occasionally.  More- 
over, as  it  was  the  Emperor  Alexander's  interest  to  obstruct 
French  policy  in  this  particular,  he  would  not  have  remained 
a  quiet  spectator  of  efforts  in  any  such  direction ;  and  so  it 
happened  that  only  a  half-hearted  course  was  taken  with  re- 
spect to  Poland,  and  all  the  advantages  that  might  have  been 
gained  were  lost.  However,  after  some  slight  differences 
between  the  Russians  and  ourselves  about  the  cession  of  the 
mouths  of  the  Cattaro,  the  two  Emperors  apparently  came 
to  terms,  and  Baron  d'Oubril  was  sent  to  Paris  from  St.  Pe- 
tersburg to  sign  a  treaty  of  peace. 

Although  the  return  of  our  army  was  constantly  an- 
nounced to  us,  yet  it  did  not  take  place,  either  because 
Bonaparte  had  already  become  aware  of  the  difficulty  of 
keeping  so  large  a  number  of  soldiers  in  France,  a  burden 
upon  the  citizens,  or  that  he  foresaw  fresh  disturbances  in 
Europe,  and  that  the  peace  would  be  of  no  long  duration. 
A  kind  of  bazaar  for  the  exhibition  of  French  industrial 
produce  was  opened  on  the  Place  des  Invalides;  but  the 
fetes  promised  to  the  Grand  Army  were  no  longer  spoken 
of.  This  exhibition  took  place,  and  profitably  occupied  the 
minds  of  the  people. 

In  the  beginning  of  September  Jerome  Bonaparte  ar- 
rived in  Paris.  Every  attempt  which  had  been  made  on 
the  colonies  had  failed,  and  the  Emperor  gave  up  naval 
enterprise  for  ever.  He  began  to  plan  a  marriage  for  his 
young  brother  with  one  of  the  European  princesses,  having 
insisted  that  his  first  marriage  should  be  regarded  as  null 
and  void. 

On  creating  the  Confederation  of  the  Ehine,  Bonaparte 
had  declared  that  the  Hanseatic  towns  should  retain  their 
liberty ;  but,  whenever  there  was  a  question  of  liberty,  it  was 
natural  enough  to  believe  that  the  Emperor's  gift  of  it  was 
in  reality  but  a  temporary  loan,  and  his  resolutions  on  the 


450        MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

subject  caused  great  agitation  in  Prussian  politics.  The 
Queen  and  the  nobility  urged  the  King  of  Prussia  to  war. 
Consequently,  during  the  campaign  which  was  very  shortly 
begun,  the  former  was  made  an  object  of  vituperation  in 
the  bulletins,  frequently  of  a  coarse  kind.  At  first  she  was 
compared  to  Armida,  who,  torch  in  hand,  tried  to  raise  up 
enemies  against  us.  As  a  contrast  to  this  poetical  compari- 
son, a  few  lines  farther  on  we  find  a  phrase  in  an  utterly 
different  style :  "  What  a  pity !  for  they  say  that  the  King 
of  Prussia  is  a  very  well-meaning  man."*  Bonaparte  fre- 
quently said  that  there  is  but  one  step  from  the  sublime  to 
the  ridiculous ;  this  is  true,  both  of  actions  and  words,  when 
true  art  is  neglected,  and  it  must  be  owned  that  he  made 
little  account  of  it. 

Mr.  Fox  died  in  September,  and  the  war  party  resumed 
power.  The  Russian  Ministry  was  changed ;  a  national  move- 
ment was  set  on  foot  among  the  Russian  nobility ;  the  peo- 
ple were  beginning  to  respond;  the  storm  was  gathering, 
and  it  suddenly  burst  when  the  Czar  refused  to  ratify  the 
treaty  signed  in  Paris  by  his  plenipotentiary,  Baron  d'Oubril. 
From  that  moment  war  was  inevitable.  ISTo  official  intima- 
tion was  made,  but  the  matter  was  openly  discussed. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  month  I  returned  from  Caute- 
rets,  and  I  was  enjoying  the  happiness  of  my  home  circle 
when  M.  de  Hemusat  received  a  sudden  order  to  proceed  to 
Mayence,  whither  the  Emperor  was  going  a  few  days  later. 
I  was  deeply  grieved  by  this  fresh  separation.  As  I  enjoyed 

*  The  Emperor  often  expresses  this  opinion  in  letters  written  during  the 
campaign.  Thus,  he  writes  to  his  wife  on  the  13th  of  October :  "  To-day  I  am  at 
Gera ;  all  is  going  on  well,  and  according  to  my  hopes.  With  the  help  of  God, 
in  a  few  days  the  state  of  things  will  be  terrible  for  the  poor  King  of  Prussia, 
whom  personally  I  pity,  for  he  is  a  good  man.  The  Queen  is  with  him  at  Erfurt. 
She  will  have  the  cruel  pleasure  of  seeing  a  battle,  if  she  wishes  it.  I  am  in  per- 
fect health,  and  have  already  grown  stouter  since  I  left  Paris  ;  yet  every  day  I 
cover  twenty  to  twenty-five  leagues  of  ground,  riding,  driving — in  every  kind  of 
way,  in  fact.  I  lie  down  at  eight,  and,  when  I  get  up  again  at  midnight,  I  remem- 
ber that  you  have  not  yet  retired  for  the  night.  Ever  yours." — P.  R. 


WAR  IS  DECLARED.  451 

none  of  those  honors  which  offer  compensation  to  some  wo- 
men even  for  the  sufferings  of  a  soldier's  wife,  I  found  it 
hard  to  resign  myself  to  these  constantly  recurring  separa- 
tions. I  remember  the  Emperor  asking  me,  after  M.  de 
Remusat  was  gone,  why  I  looked  so  sad,  and,  when  I  an- 
swered that  it  was  because  my  husband  had  left  me,  he 
laughed  at  me.  "  Sire,"  I  added,  "  I  know  nothing  of  the 
delights  of  heroism,  and  I  always  meant  to  take  out  my 
share  of  glory  in  happiness."  He  laughed  again.  "  Happi- 
ness ? "  he  said.  "  Ah,  yes !  much  we  think  of  happiness  in 
this  age." 

Before  the  departure  for  Mayence  I  again  met  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  who  was  very  friendly.  He  assured  me  that 
nothing  could  be  better  for  our  prospects  than  that  M.  de 
Remusat  should  be  in  attendance  on  the  Emperor  in  all  his 
journeys ;  but,  as  he  saw  tears  in  my  eyes,  he  spoke  seriously, 
and  I  was  grateful  to  him  for  not  jesting  on  a  subject  which 
to  me  only  was  a  real  grief,  but  which  certainly  must  have 
appeared  of  slight  consequence  to  the  many  wives  and  moth- 
ers whose  husbands  and  sons  were  leaving  them  for  real 
scenes  of  danger.  M.  de  Talleyrand's  natural  tact  and  his 
admirable  good  taste  lead  him  to  adapt  his  tone  perfectly  to 
those  whom  he  addresses ;  this  is  one  of  his  most  attractive 
characteristics. 

The  Emperor  went  away  suddenly  on  the  25th  of  Sep- 
tember, without  sending  any  message  to  the  Senate  in  ex- 
planation of  his  absence.*  The  Empress,  who  always  parted 

*  These  journeys  and  long  absences  of  the  Emperor  were  more  frequent  than 
we  can  now  realize.  Never  has  a  sovereign  dwelt  less  in  his  own  capital.  There 
is  a  curious  work  entitled  "  Itineraire  general  de  Napoleon,  Chronologie  du  Con- 
sulat  et  de  1'Empire,  indiquant  jour  par  jour  pendant  toute  sa  vie,  le  lieu  ou 
etait  Napoleon  ce  qu'il  y  a  fait,  et  les  Evenements  les  plus  remarquables  qui 
s'attachent  &  son  Histoire,  etc.,  par  A.  M.  Perrot.  Paris,  Bistor,  1845."  From 
this  book,  which  is  very  correct,  especially  with  regard  to  the  period  of  Impe- 
rial grandeur,  we  learn  that  from  the  time  of  his  accession  to  the  throne  until 
his  abdication  in  1814,  Napoleon  spent  only  965  days  in  Paris,  i.  e.,  less  than 
three  years,  during  a  reign  of  ten.  He  was  traveling,  if  not  out  of  France,  yet 
at  a  considerable  distance  from  Paris,  and  from  his  palaces  of  Saint  Cloud,  Mai- 


452  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

with  him  unwillingly,  had  not  been  able  at  first  to  obtain 
permission  to  accompany  him,  though  she  hoped  to  rejoin 
him  later.  She,  however,  used  such  persuasion,  during  the 
last  day  of  his  stay  at  Saint  Cloud,  that  toward  midnight  he 
yielded,  and  she  entered  his  traveling  carriage  with  him  and 
only  one  attendant.  The  Imperial  suite  did  not  join  her 
until  a  few  days  later.  I  was  no  longer  included  in  these 
journeys ;  my  health  forbade.  I  may  affirm  that  the  Em- 
press, who  had  become  accustomed  to  the  gratification  to  her 
vanity  afforded  her  by  ladies  of  a  higher  rank  than  mine 
seeking  to  join  her  Court,  had  returned  in  her  heart  to  her 
former  friendship,  and  now  felt  real  regret  at  my  absence. 
As  for  the  Emperor,  I  counted  for  little  in  his  eyes,  and  he 
was  right.  At  his  Court  a  woman  was  nothing,  and  a  woman 
in  ill  health  less  than  nothing. 

Mme.  Bonaparte  told  me  that  her  husband  entered  upon 
this  Prussian  campaign  with  some  reluctance.  Luxury  and 
ease  had  had  their  natural  effect  upon  him,  and  the  hardships 
of  camp-life  now  affected  his  imagination  unpleasantly.  Nor 
was  he  devoid  of  solicitude.  The  Prussian  troops  were  re- 
nowned; their  cavalry  was  recognized  as  first-rate,  while 
ours  as  yet  inspired  no  confidence,  and  our  military  men  ex- 
pected a  formidable  resistance. 

The  prompt  and  unparalleled  result  of  the  battle  of  Jena 
is  one  of  those  miracles  which  upset  all  human  calculations. 
That  victory  astonished  and  confounded  all  Europe,  proved 
the  good  fortune  as  well  as  the  genius  of  Bonaparte,  and 
bore  witness  to  French  valor. 

He  did  not  remain  long  at  Mayence ;  the  Prussians  had 
marched  into  Saxony,  and  it  was  imperative  to  follow  them. 
At  the  opening  of  this  campaign  the  Emperor  formed  two 
new  companies  of  gendarmes;  the  command  of  one  was 
given  to  the  Yicomte  de  Montmorency.  This  was  an  appeal 

maison,  Compiegne,  Rambouillet,  and  Fontainebleau,  for  more  than  1,600  days, 
that  is,  for  more  than  four  years,  and  was  frequently  absent  for  six  months  at 
a  time.— P.  R. 


DEPARTURE  OF  THE  EMPEROR.       4.53 

to  the  nobility  to  take  their  share  of  glory,  to  nibble  at  the 
bait  of  a  semblance  of  privilege ;  and,  in  fact,  a  few  gentle- 
men did  join  that  regiment. 

During  the  preparations  for  the  important  coming  events, 
it  was  decided  that  the  Empress,  with  those  members  of  the 
Court  who  had  accompanied  her,  should  remain  at  Mayence. 
M.  de  Remusat  was  in  waiting,  having  the  superintendence 
of  her  entire  household,  and  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  also  to 
remain  until  further  orders. 

Just  before  the  Emperor's  departure,  my  husband  was 
present  at  a  scene  which  made  a  great  impression  on  him. 
M.  de  Talleyrand  was  in  the  Emperor's  cabinet,  where  M.  de 
Eemusat  was  receiving  final  instructions;  it  was  evening, 
and  the  traveling-carriages  were  waiting.  The  Emperor  sent 
my  husband  to  summon  the  Empress ;  he  returned  with  her 
in  a  few  moments.  She  was  weeping.  Agitated  by  her 
tears,  the  Emperor  held  her  for  a  long  time  in  his  arms,  and 
seemed  almost  unable  to  bid  her  farewell.  He  was  strongly 
moved,  and  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  also  much  affected.  The 
Emperor,  still  holding  his  wife  to  his  heart,  approached  M. 
de  Talleyrand  with  outstretched  hand ;  then,  throwing  his 
arms  round  both  at  once,  he  said  to  M.  de  Kemusat,  "  It  is 
very  hard  to  leave  the  two  persons  one  loves  best."  As  he 
uttered  these  words,  he  was  overcome  by  a  sort  of  nervous 
emotion,  which  increased  to  such  a  degree  that  he  wept  un- 
controllably, and  almost  immediately  an  attack  of  convulsions 
ensued,  which  brought  on  vomiting.  He  was  placed  in  a 
chair,  and  drank  some  orange-flower  water,  but  continued  to 
weep  for  fully  a  quarter  of  an  hour.  At  length  he  mastered 
himself,  and,  rising  suddenly,  shook  M.  de  Talleyrand  by  the 
hand,  gave  a  last  embrace  to  his  wife,  and  said  to  M.  de 
Eemusat :  "  Are  the  carriages  ready  2  Call  the  suite,  and  let 
us  go." 

When,  on  his  return,  my  husband  described  this  scene  to 
me,  it  made  me  feel  glad.  The  fact  that  natural  feeling  had 
got  the  mastery  over  Bonaparte  always  seemed  to  me  a  vie- 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RlZMUSAT. 

tory  in  which  we  were  all  interested.  He  left  Mayence  on 
the  22d  of  October,  at  9  P.  M. 

No  announcement  had  as  yet  been  made  to  the  Senate, 
but  every  one  expected  a  formidable  war.  It  was  a  national 
war  on  the  part  of  the  Prussians,  for  in  declaring  it  the  King 
had  yielded  to  the  ardent  desire  of  all  the  nobility  and  a 
majority  of  the  people. 

Moreover,  the  rumors  regarding  the  foundation  of  a  king- 
dom of  Poland  were  disquieting  to  reigning  sovereigns.  A 
Northern  League  was  in  contemplation,  which  was  to  em- 
brace all  the  states  not  comprised  in  the  Confederation  of 
the  Rhine. 

The  young  Queen  had  much  influence  with  her  husband, 
and  great  confidence  in  Prince  Louis  of  Prussia,  who  longed 
for  an  opportunity  to  distinguish  himself.  He  was  brave, 
amiable,  had  great  taste  for  the  fine  arts,  and  had  fired  the 
youthful  nobility  with  his  own  ardor.  The  Prussian  army, 
full  of  life  and  spirit,  inspired  complete  confidence  in  the 
new  coalition ;  its  cavalry  was  considered  the  finest  in  Eu- 
rope. When  we  remember  how  easily  all  this  was  dispersed, 
we  must  believe  that  the  leaders  were  very  incompetent,  and 
that  the  old  Prince  of  Brunswick  must  once  more  have  mis- 
directed the  courageous  soldiers  confided  to  him. 

Even  at  the  opening  of  this  campaign,  it  was  easy  to  see 
that  France  was  weary  of  the  uncertainty  which  war  brought 
into  both  public  and  private  affairs.  Discontent  was  visible 
in  the  expression  of  men's  countenances,  and  it  was  evident 
that  the  Emperor  must  indeed  do  wonders  to  rekindle  feel- 
ings that  were  beginning  to  chill.  In  vain  did  the  news- 
papers contain  articles  describing  the  zeal  with  which  the 
new  conscripts  came  to  be  enrolled  in  all  the  departments ; 
no  one  was  deceived  by  these  accounts — no  one  even  tried 
to  appear  to  be  deceived.  Paris  fell  into  the  gloomy  condi- 
tion which  war  always  produces  in  capital  cities  while  it 
lasts.  The  progress  of  our  industrial  pursuits  was  admired 
at  the  Exhibition  of  which  I  have  spoken,  but  curiosity 


BONAPARTE'S  MYSTERIOUS  CONDUCT.  455 

alone  will  not  stir  the  heart  of  a  nation ;  and,  when  citizens 
may  not  take  the  least  part  in  their  own  government,  they 
regard  the  improvements  in  civilization  which  are  due  to 
that  government  merely  as  a  spectacle.  We  began  to  feel  in 
France  that  there  was  something  mysterious  in  Bonaparte's 
conduct  toward  us.  We  perceived  that  it  was  not  for  us 
that  he  lived  and  acted ;  that  what  he  wanted  from  us  was 
an  appearance  of  prosperity,  brilliant  rather  than  solid,  which 
should  surround  him  with  fresh  luster.  I  recollect  writing 
to  my  husband  during  the  campaign  in  the  following  terms  : 
"  The  situation  is  greatly  changed ;  so  are  men's  minds :  the 
military  miracles  of  this  year  do  not  produce  half  the  effect 
of  former  ones.  The  enthusiasm  excited  by  the  battle  of 
Austerlitz  is  not  to  be  aroused  now."  *  The  Emperor  him- 

*  My  grandmother's  correspondence  bears  witness  to  the  great  change  which 
had  taken  place  in  public  opinion  on  the  subject  of  the  military  success  of  the 
Emperor.  I  believe  the  publication  of  these  letters  would  be  of  interest,  even 
though  they  did  not  contain  any  political  revelations.  I  intend  shortly  to  pub- 
lish them,  but  I  could  quote  numerous  passages  in  support  of  what  is  here 
stated,  or  has  been  stated  in  previous  chapters,  notwithstanding  the  reserve 
made  necessary  by  the  insecurity  of  the  post-office.  For  instance,  during  this 
Prussian  campaign,  two  months  after  the  battle  of  Jena,  and  before  that  of 
Eylau,  Madame  de  Remusat  writes  on  the  12th  of -December,  1806  :  "We  ought 
to  be  very  cautious  in  our  correspondence,  and,  if  I  may  say  so,  I  think  you  are 
imprudent,  and  there  are  sometimes  philosophic  phrases  in  your  letters  which 
might  be  taken  in  bad  part.  It  is  an  additional  trial  that  we  may  not  even 
write  freely  when  separated  by  so  great  a  distance ;  but  we  must  resign  our- 
selves to  every  sacrifice,  and  hope  that  by  this  one  we  may  obtain  a  long  peace. 
Peace  !  People  scarcely  hope  for  it  here.  Depression  and  discontent  prevail 
everywhere ;  there  are  both  suffering  and  open  complaint.  This  campaign  does 
not  produce  one  quarter  of  the  effect  of  the  last.  There  is  no  admiration,  and 
even  no  astonishment ;  we  have  become  used  to  miracles.  The  bulletins  are  all 
received  without  applause  at  the  theatres ;  in  fact,  a  generally  painful  feeling 
prevails.  This  feeling  is,  no  doubt,  unjust ;  for,  after  all,  there  are  cases  in 
which  even  men  of  the  strongest  mind  are  carried  along  by  circumstances  far- 
ther than  they  wish,  and  I  can  not  believe  that  a  great  mind  will  seek  for  glory 
in  war.  Add  to  this  the  conscription,  and  the  new  decrees  respecting  commerce. 
Enmity  makes  use  of  everything,  and  is  not  guided  by  reason.  People  pretend 
that  these  measures  are  passed  from  motives  of  anger  only.  I  am  far  from 
passing  judgment  on  them,  for,  in  spite  of  all  I  hear,  I  must  admire  and  trust 


4:56  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

self  perceived  it ;  for,  when  lie  liad  returned  to  Paris  after 
the  treaty  of  Tilsit,  he  said :  "  Military  glory  soon  palls  upon 
modern  nations.  Fifty  battles  produce  little  more  sensation 
than  five  or  six.  To  the  French  I  shall  always  be  the  man 
of  Marengo,  rather  than  of  Jena  or  Friedland." 

As  the  Emperor's  designs  on  Europe  increased  in  magni- 
tude, it  became  more  and  more  needful  for  him  to  centralize 
his  administration,  in  order  that  his  commands,  all  emanating 
from  the  same  point,  might  be  rapidly  transmitted  to  the 
proper  quarters.  The  submission  of  the  Senate  might  be 
taken  for  granted ;  the  importance  of  the  Corps  Legislatif 
was  lessening  every  day.  Bonaparte  had  doubtless  resolved 
on  seizing  the  first  pretext  for  ridding  himself  of  the  Trib- 
unate, and  he  extended  the  powers  of  the  Council  of  State, 
which  consisted  of  men  of  ability,  on  whom  he  exercised  a 
direct  pressure.  By  a  new  decree  he  now  appointed  a  Com- 
mittee for  Petitions  in  the  Council  of  State,  which  consisted 
of  councilors,  masters  of  requests,  and  auditors.  They  met 
three  times  a  week,  and  reported  to  Bonaparte.  MM.  Mole 
and  Pasquier,  both  of  them  "  Masters  of  Requests,"  were 
members  of  this  committee.  They  had  entered  public  life 
at  the  same  period ;  both,  although  widely  differing  in  age,* 
bore  names  well  known  in  the  magistracy;  they  had  the 
same  social  connections,  equal  zeal,  and  similar  ambition,  and 
they  were  beginning  to  make  themselves  felt  in  the  new 
Government.  Meanwhile,  the  Emperor  already  displayed  a 

the  power  which  rules  the  fate  of  all  I  hold  dear."  This  letter,  evidently,  was 
not  intrusted  to  the  post,  but  conveyed  by  some  friendly  hand.  But,  even  in 
their  correspondence  carried  on  by  the  ordinary  means,  the  writers  expressed 
their  feelings,  their  distrust,  almost  amounting  to  horror,  of  the  then  state  of 
things.  Prudence,  however,  sometimes  had  the  upper  hand ;  and  in  a  letter 
preceding  this  one  my  grandmother  excuses  herself  for  not  forwarding  to  her 
husband  a  letter  from  her  son  Charles,  then  a  boy  of  nine  years  old,  on  the 
ground  of  its  lack  of  prudence.  The  young  scholar,  in  quoting  the  line  from 
Phaedrus,  Humiles  laborant  ubi  potentes  dissident,  had  ventured  to  express  the 
following  sentiment :  "  I  dislike  Philip  because  he  has  too  much  ambition." — 
P.  R. 

*  M.  Mole  was  then  twenty-six  years  of  age,  and  M.  Pasquier  about  forty. 


SESSION  OF  THE  SENATE.  457 

preference  for  M.  Mole.  He  exercised  an  ascendancy  over 
this  young  man,  who,  although  naturally  of  a  grave  disposi- 
tion, was  yet  capable  of  enthusiasm.  He  thought  -he  could 
mold  his  opinions  in  his  own  way,  and  he  partly  succeeded, 
while  he  made  use  of  the  parliamentary  tendencies  of  M. 
Pasquier.  "I  use  one,"  he  said  sometimes,  "but  I  create 
the  other."  I  quote  these  words  of  his  to  show  how  he  was 
accustomed  to  analyze  his  own  conduct  toward  every  one. 

Horse-races,  which  had  been  decreed  by  the  Emperor 
himself  when  he  was  as  yet  only  First  Consul,  took  place  in 
Paris  in  the  autumn  of  this  year.  In  fact,  France  had  come 
to  resemble  a  great  audience  at  a  theatre,  before  whom  per- 
formances of  all  kinds  were  given  on  the  sole  condition  that 
hands  should  be  raised  only  to  applaud. 

On  the  4th  of  October  the  Senate  was  convoked.  The 
Arch-Chancellor,  as  he  had  done  in  the  past,  and  as  he  was 
to  do  in  the  future,  announced  the  war  in  an  insignificant 
and  pompous  speech.  After  this,  he  read  a  letter  from  the 
Emperor,  dated  from  headquarters,  in  which  he  stated  that 
the  King  of  Prussia  was  the  aggressor,  and  deplored  the  evil 
influence  that  constantly  disturbed  the  repose  of  France, 
while  he  announced  that  the  invasion  of  Saxony  had  obliged 
him  to  march  rapidly  forward.  This  letter  was  accompanied 
by  the  official  report  of  the  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs.  He 
could  discover  no  valid  cause  for  war ;  he  expressed  surprise 
that  the  freedom  granted  to  the  Hanseatic  towns  could  have 
given  umbrage  to  the  Prussian  Government,  and  quoted  a 
note  from  M.  de  Knobelsdorff,  the  new  envoy  from  Prussia. 

A  rumor  arose  that,  some  time  previously,  M.  de  Luc- 
chesini,  who  was  devoted,  it  was  said,  to  England,  had 
alarmed  the  Court  by  unfounded  reports  of  a  universal 
monarchy  planned  by  the  French  Government.  On  being 
informed  of  this,  the  Emperor  had  requested  that  M.  de 
Lucchesini  should  be  recalled.  M.  de  Knobelsdorff  suc- 
ceeded him,  but  no  good  result  ensued.  The  coolness  be- 
tween the  two  Cabinets  increased.  The  Emperor  departed. 


458  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

a 

The  Prussian  Minister  received  a  final  note  from  his  sover- 
eign, demanding  the  immediate  evacuation  of  the  whole  of 
Germany  by  the  French  troops,  and  requiring  that  the  ratifi- 
cation of  this  demand  should  be  sent  to  the  King  of  Prussia's 
headquarters  by  the  8th  of  October.  M.  de  Knobelsdorff 
dispatched  this  note  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  then  at  Mayence, 
and  it  was  forwarded  by  him  to  the  Emperor,  who  had  al- 
ready reached  Bamberg. 

The  first  bulletin  on  the  opening  of  the  campaign  gives 
the  following  account  of  what  had  taken  place :  "  On  the  7th 
the  Emperor  received  dispatches  from  Mayence,  consisting 
of  M.  de  Knobelsdorff's  note  and  a  letter  from  the  King  of 
Prussia,  twenty  pages  long — a  pamphlet,  in  fact,  in  the  style 
of  those  written  to  order  for  the  English  Government,  by 
authors  hired  for  £500  a  year.  The  Emperor  did  not  read 
it  through,  and  remarked  to  the  persons  about  him :  *  I  am 
sorry  for  my  brother,  the  King  of  Prussia ;  he  does  not  un- 
derstand French.  He  has  certainly  not  read  this  rhapsody.' 
Then  he  turned  to  Marshal  Berthier :  '  Marshal,  they  give  us 
a  rendezvous  for  the  8th ;  never  has  a  Frenchman  failed  to 
keep  such  an  appointment.  But,  as  it  seems  that  a  lovely 
Queen  wishes  to  be  a  spectator  at  our  contest,  let  us  be  cour- 
teous, and  march  without  delay  toward  Saxony.'  " 

And,  in  fact,  hostilities  began  on  the  8th  of  October,  1806. 

The  Emperor's  proclamation  to  his  soldiers  was,  like  the 
former  ones,  in  a  style  peculiar  to  himself  and  belonging  to 
no  particular  epoch. 

"  Let  us  march,"  he  said,  "  since  our  moderation  has  failed 
to  cure  them  of  their  astounding  folly.  Let  the  Prussian 
army  meet  the  same  fate  as  that  which  befell  it  fourteen 
years  ago.  Let  them  learn  that  if  it  is  easy  to  acquire  an 
increase  of  territory  and  of  power  by  means  of  the  friendship 
of  a  great  nation,  so  its  enmity,  which  can  only  be  incurred 
by  forsaking  all  wisdom  and  reason,  is  more  terrible  than  the 
storms  of  ocean." 

At  the  same  time,  the  King  of  Holland  returned  to  the 


THE  EMPRESS  AT  MATENGE.  459 

Hague,  in  order  to  assemble  the  States,  and  to  ask  them  to 
pass  a  law  enacting  the  payment  in  advance  of  one  year's 
land-tax.  Having  obtained  this,  he  moved  his  headquarters 
to  the  frontier.  Thus,  the  Dutch,  to  whom  a  long  continua- 
tion of  prosperity,  in  return  for  the  surrender  of  their  liberty, 
had  been  promised,  were  from  the  very  first  threatened  with 
war,  and  had  to  endure  a  double  taxation  and  a  blockade  of 
the  continent,  which  destroyed  their  trade. 

Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  joined  her  brother  at  Mayence, 
and  seemed  to  breathe  freely  when  once  more  among  her 
own  people.  The  young  Princess  of  Baden  also  came  to 
Mayence ;  there  was  still,  at  this  time,  a  great  coolness  be- 
tween her  husband  and  herself.  The  Empress  received  a 
visit  from  the  Prince  Primate  and  from  some  of  the  sover- 
eigns belonging  to  the  Confederation.  Her  life  at  Mayence 
was  very  bright  and  stirring;  many  distinguished  person- 
ages came  thither  to  pay  their  respects  to  her.  She  would 
have  preferred  to  follow  the  Emperor,  but,  when  she  wrote 
asking  leave  to  join  him,  he  answered :  "  I  am  not  able  to 
send  for  you  here.  I  am  the  slave  of  the  nature  of  things 
and  the  force  of  circumstances;  we  must  wait  until  they 
decide."* 

The  Empress,  who  was  very  anxious  now  that  her  hus- 
band was  about  to  incur  fresh  risks,  had  no  friend  among 

*  This  letter  is  not  included  in  Napoleon's  general  correspondence  published 
under  the  Second  Empire ;  but  the  letters  belonging  to  this  period  which  are 
comprised  in  this  publication  are  very  similar  both  in  style  and  matter.  More- 
over, this  was  the  usual  subject  of  the  Emperor's  letters  to  Josephine  in  all  his 
campaigns.  He  writes  to  her  from  Warsaw  a  few  months  later,  on  the  23d  of 
January,  1807 :  "  I  have  your  letter  of  January  15th.  I  could  not  allow  ladies  to 
undertake  such  a  journey  as  this ;  bad  roads,  unsafe  and  dirty.  Go  back  to 
Paris,  be  bright  and  gay ;  perhaps  I  shall  be  there  soon.  I  was  amused  at  your 
saying  you  took  a  husband  in  order  to  have  him  with  you ;  I  fancied  in  my 
ignorance  that  the  wife  was  made  for  the  husband,  and  the  husband  for  the 
country,  the  family,  and  glory.  Forgive  my  ignorance ;  there  is  always  something 
to  be  learned  from  beautiful  women.  Farewell,  my  dearest.  Believe  me,  it 
costs  me  something  not  to  send  for  you.  Say  to  yourself,  It  is  a  proof  how 
precious  I  am  to  him." — P.  R. 


4:60  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

her  court  circle  to  sympathize  affectionately  with  her.  In 
her  suite  were  several  ladies  who  belonged  by  their  very 
names  to  memories  which  they  claimed  a  right  to  retain  at 
the  new  Court ;  and  they  took  leave  to  disapprove  of  the 
war,  and  especially  to  express  an  interest  which  was  natural 
enough  in  the  beautiful  Queen.  She  soon  became  an  object 
of  attack  in  each  successive  bulletin.  The  death  of  Prince 
Louis  of  Prussia,  with  whom  some  of  the  ladies-in-waiting 
during  the  time  of  their  emigration  had  been  acquainted, 
was  also  much  lamented  by  them,  and  a  sort  of  disdainful 
opposition  formed  itself  around  our  Empress,  of  which  Mme. 
de  la  Rochefoucauld  took  the  lead. 

M.  de  Remusat,  who  had  the  superintendence  of  this 
miniature  Court,  became  the  recipient  of  the  complaints  of 
the  Empress,  who,  having  nothing  serious  to  occupy  her, 
was  annoyed  by  foolish  and  vain  speeches  which  she  ought 
to  have  despised.  He  advised  her  to  pay  no  attention  to 
these  vexations,  and  by  no  means  to  mention  them  to  the 
Emperor,  who  would  make  them  of  more  importance  than 
was  at  all  desirable.  Mme.  Bonaparte,  however,  wrote  all 
the  history  to  her  husband,  and  subsequently  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, who  was  present  during  these  little  storms  which  might 
have  been  so  easily  dispersed,  thought  to  amuse  the  Emperor 
with  a  description  of  them.  Bonaparte  did  not  regard  the 
matter  in  a  harmless  light.  I  have  dwelt  on  this  in  order, 
later  on,  to  explain  what  came  of  it  to  ourselves  personally. 

Meanwhile,  a  life  so  trivial  and  so  empty  was  wearisome 
to  my  husband.  He  amused  himself  by  learning  German, 
in  order,  as  he  wrote  to  me,  "  at  least  to  occupy  a  portion  of 
each  day  usefully."  He  took  increasing  pleasure  in  the  so- 
ciety of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  treated  him  with  confidence 
and  warm  friendship.  Whenever  the  slightest  appearance 
of  feeling  is  attributed  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  one  is  obliged 
to  put  the  statement  with  strong  affirmation,  because  it  will 
inevitably  be  received  with  doubt.  The  world  judges  him 
with  severity,  or  at  least  too  sweepingly.  I  know  him  to  be 


RECEPTION  OF  CARDINAL  MAURT. 

capable  of  affection,  and  I  venture  to  say  that,  had  he  been 
altogether  deceitful,  I  could  not  have  become  so  sincerely 
attached  to  him. 

During  this  time  I  was  living  very  quietly  in  Paris  with 
my  mother,  my  sister,  and  my  children.  Some  distinguished 
people  came  to  my  house ;  also  a  number  of  literary  men, 
who  were  attracted  thither  by  my  husband's  authority  over 
the  theatres.  Princess  Caroline  only  (Duchess  of  Berg)  re- 
quired any  court  to  be  paid  to  her.  She  lived  at  the  Elysee 
with  a  certain  amount  of  state ;  people  waited  on  her  as  they 
did  on  the  Arch-Chancellor  Cambaceres.  Occasional  visits 
had  to  be  paid  to  the  ministers,  but  the  remainder  of  one's 
time  was  one's  own.  News  from  the  seat  of  war  was  re- 
ceived without  enthusiasm,  but  not  without  interest,  because 
every  family  was  more  or  less  connected  with  the  army. 

The  knowledge  that  every  drawing-room  was  watched 
by  the  police  prevented  all  serious  conversation  ;  every  one 
was  engrossed  by  secret  anxieties,  and  a  sort  of  isolation, 
which  was  just  what  the  Emperor  wished,  was  the  result. 

Nevertheless,  a  little  incident  happened  during  the  cam- 
paign which  amused  all  Paris  for  several  weeks.  On  the 
23d  of  October  Cardinal  Maury  was  chosen — by  that  class 
of  the  Institute  which  has  received  the  name  of  the  French 
Academy — to  succeed  M.  Target.  When  the  day  for  his  re- 
ception drew  near,  some  one  raised  the  question  whether  he 
should  be  addressed  as  Monseigneur,  and  a  great  commotion 
ensued.  Before  the  Revolution  a  similar  discussion  had  oc- 
curred on  the  same  subject.  D'Alembert  and  the  three 
members  of  the  Academy  had  pleaded  for  the  rights  of 
equality  in  the  sanctuary  of  letters ;  but  the  Academy,  hav- 
ing in  1806  become  "  the  Eight,"  was  disposed  to  grant  the 
title  of  Mbnseigneur,  in  opposition  to  the  party  headed  by 
Kegnault  de  St.  Jean  d'Angely,  his  brother-in-law  Arnault, 
Chenier,  etc.  The  discussion  ran  so  high,  the  Cardinal  de- 
clared so  positively  that  he  would  not  present  himself  unless 
he  were  .to  be  addressed  according  to  his  rank,  the  difficulty 


462  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

of  arriving  with  due  freedom  at  any  decision  was  so  great, 
that  it  was  determined  to  refer  the  matter  to  the  Emperor 
himself,  and  this  foolish  dispute  was  actually  brought  before 
him  on  the  battle-field.  Meanwhile,  whenever  the  Cardinal 
met  any  of  the  members  of  the  Institute  who  were  hostile 
to  him,  he  attacked  them.  On  one  occasion  he  met  M.  Re- 
gnault  dining  at  Mme.  Murat's,  and  an  amusing  passage-at- 
arms,  at  which  I  was  present,  took  place  between  them. 
Almost  at  the  very  beginning  of  the  conversation,  the  Car- 
dinal requested  M.  Regnault  to  go  into  another  room,  to 
which  M.  Regnault  consented,  provided  that  some  of  the 
other  guests  would  accompany  him.  The  Cardinal,  who  was 
annoyed,  began  to  get  excited.*  "  You  do  not  recollect, 
then,  sir,"  he  said,  "  that  at  the  Constituent  Assembly  I 
called  you  little  ~boy"  "  That  is  no  reason,"  replied  M.  Re- 
gnault, "  why  we  should  give  you  a  token  of  respect  at  the 
present  day."  "  If  my  name  were  Montmorency,"  returned 
the  Cardinal,  "  I  could  afford  to  laugh  at  you  ;  but  I  owe  to 
my  abilities  only  my  elevation  to  the  Academy,  and,  if  I 
yielded  the  point  of  Monseigneur,  the  next  day  you  would 
treat  me  as  an  equal."  M.  Regnault  reminded  us  that  once 
only  had  the  French  Academy  consented  to  use  the  title  of 
Monseigneur,  and  that  then  it  was  in  favor  of  Cardinal  Du- 
bois,  who  was  received  by  Fontenelle.  "  But,"  he  added, 
"  times  are  greatly  changed."  I  must  own  that,  looking  at 
Cardinal  Maury,  I  ventured  to  think  men  were  not  so  much 
altered.  Finally  the  discussion  became  hot ;  it  was  reported 
to  the  Emperor,  who  sent  orders  to  the  academicians  to  ad- 
dress the  Cardinal  as  Monseigneur.  On  this  everybody  im- 
mediately submitted,  and  we  heard  no  more  about  it. 

*  He  was  a  very  hot-tempered  man. 


CHAPTEE  XXII. 

(1806-1807.) 

Death  of  Prince  Louis  of  Prussia— Battle  of  Jena— The  Queen  of  Prussia  and  the 
Emperor  Alexander — The  Emperor  and  the  Be  volution — Court  Life  at  Mayence 
—Life  in  Paris— Marshal  Brune— Taking  of  Lubeck— The  Princess  of  Hatzfeld 
—The  Auditors  of  the  State  Council— Sufferings  of  the  Army— The  King  of 
Saxony— Battle  of  Eylau. 

THE  Emperor  had  left  Bamberg,  and  was  hastening  to 
the  assistance  of  the  King  of  Saxony.  Our  armies,  which 
had  been  gathered  together  with  the  surprising  rapidity  that 
always  defeated  the  plans  of  the  enemy,  were  marching  on- 
ward. The  first  skirmishes  took  place  at  Saalfeld,  between 
Marshal  Lannes  and  the  vanguard  of  Prince  Hohenlohe, 
commanded  by  Prince  Louis  of  Prussia.  The  latter,  who 
was  brave  to  rashness,  fought  in  the  ranks  until,  coming  to  a 
hand-to-hand  conflict  with  a  quartermaster  and  refusing  to 
surrender,  he  fell  covered  with  wounds.  His  death  disheart- 
ened the  Prussians,  while  it  increased  the  ardor  of  our  troops. 
"If,"  says  the  Imperial  bulletin,  "his  last  moments  were 
those  of  a  bad  citizen,  his  death  was  glorious  and  deserv- 
ing of  regret.  He  died  as  every  good  soldier  must  wish  to 
die."  * 

I  am  ignorant  whether,  in  Prussia,  Prince  Louis  was  con- 

*  It  appears  certain  that  he  lost  his  life  in  endeavoring  to  save  that  of  a 
friend.  Those  who  were  intimate  with  him  say  he  had  but  one  fault — a  jealousy 
of  any  kind  of  success  in  others.  This  is  a  weakness  very  common  among 
princes :  the  very  abilities  which  are  devoted  to  their  service  seem  to  require 
their  forgiveness.  Prince  Louis  was  nephew  to  the  King  of  Prussia. 
35 


464  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

sidered  to  have  preferred  his  own  glory  to  the  interests  of 
his  country  by  promoting  the  war.  It  may  have  been  im- 
prudent to  commence  it  when  he  did ;  doubtless  the  right 
moment  for  declaring  would  have  been  at  the  formation  of 
the  coalition  in  the  preceding  year ;  yet  the  feelings  of  the 
Prince  were,  even  at  this  time,  shared  by  a  great  number  of 
his  countrymen. 

For  some  days  the  bulletins  gave  accounts  of  several  par- 
tial engagements  which  were  but  the  prelude  to  the  great 
battle  of  the  14th  of  October.  The  Prussian  Court  was 
described  as  being  in  great  confusion,  and  despotic  advice 
was  given  to  those  princes  who  are  led  into  hesitation  by 
consulting  the  multitude  on  great  political  interests  above  its 
comprehension !  As  if  nations,  having  reached  their  present 
degree  of  enlightenment,  could  continue  to  intrust  the  money 
taken  from  their  coffers,  and  the  men  levied  from  among 
their  ranks,  to  their  rulers,  without  ascertaining  the  uses  to 
which  the  gold  and  the  soldiers  are  to  be  put ! 

On  the  14th  of  October  the  two  armies  met  at  Jena,  and 
and  in  a  few  hours  this  important  battle  decided  the  fate  of 
the  King  of  Prussia.  The  renowned  Prussian  cavalry  could 
not  resist  our  infantry ;  confused  orders  caused  confusion  in 
the  ranks ;  a  great  number  of  Prussians  were  killed  or  taken 
prisoners ;  *  several  general  officers  lay  dead  on  the  field  of 
battle ;  the  Prince  of  Brunswick  was  severely  wounded,  and 
the  King  was  forced  to  fly.  In  fact,  the  rout  was  complete. 
Our  bulletins  were  full  of  the  praises  of  Marshal  Davoust, 
who  had  in  truth  greatly  contributed  to  the  success  of  the 

*  The  Emperor  gives  the  following  account  of  Jena  in  a  letter  to  the  Em- 
press, written  on  the  battle-field  on  the  15th  of  October,  1806  :  "My  dearest,  I 
have  had  great  success  against  the  Prussians.  Yesterday  I  gained  a  great  vic- 
tory. They  numbered  a  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  men.  I  have  taken  twenty 
thousand  prisoners,  a  hundred  of  their  guns,  and  some  flags.  I  was  very  near 
the  King  of  Prussia,  and  only  just  missed  taking  him,  as  well  as  the  Queen.  I 
have  been  bivouacking  the  last  two  days.  I  am  in  capital  health.  Adieu,  my 
dearest ;  keep  yourself  well,  and  think  of  me.  If  Hortense  is  at  Mayence,  kiss 
her  for  me,  as  well  as  Napoleon  and  the  little  fellow." — P.  R. 


BATTLE  OF  JENA.  465 

day,  and  the  Emperor  willingly  acknowledged  this.  He 
was  not  usually  so  ready  to  render  justice  to  his  generals. 
When  the  Empress  questioned  him  on  his  return  about  the 
eulogiums  he  had  allowed  to  be  lavished  on  Davoust  on  this 
occasion,  he  answered  her,  laughing :  "  I  can  heap  upon  him 
as  much  glory  as  I  please ;  he  will  never  be  strong  enough  to 
carry  it." 

On  the  evening  of  the  battle  a  whimsical  adventure  hap- 
pened to  M.  Eugene  de  Montesquieu.*  He  was  an  orderly 
officer,  and  was  sent  by  the  Emperor  to  the  King  of  Prussia 
with  a  letter,  to  which  I  shall  presently  allude.  He  was 
detained  all  day  at  the  Prussian  headquarters,  where  the  de- 
feat of  the  French  was  considered  certain,  and  they  wished 
him  to  witness  it.  He  remained,  therefore,  an  agitated  but 
inactive  spectator  of  the  course  of  events.  The  generals,  and 
Bliicher  f  in  particular,  affected  to  give  alarming  orders  in 
his  presence.  Toward  evening  the  young  man,  involved  in 
the  flight  of  the  Prussians,  was  endeavoring  to  rejoin  our 
camp.  On  his  way  he  met  with  two  Frenchmen,  who  joined 
him,  and  the  three  together  contrived  to  get  hold  of  eighteen 
disbanded  Prussians,  whom  they  brought  in  triumph  to  the 
Emperor.  This  capture  greatly  diverted  him. 

The  battle  of  Jena  was  followed  by  one  of  the  rapid 
marches  which  Bonaparte  was  wont  to  impose  on  his  army 
in  the  hour  of  victory.  ~No  one  ever  knew  better  how  to 
profit  by  victory  than  he ;  he  bewildered  the  enemy,  leaving 
him  not  a  moment's  repose. 

The  town  of  Erfurt  capitulated  on  the  16th.  The  King 
of  Saxony  was  slightly  reprimanded  for  having  yielded  to 
the  King  of  Prussia,  by  giving  him  the  entry  of  his  states 
and  taking  part  in  the  beginning  of  the  war,  but  his  prison- 
ers were  restored  to  him.  General  Clarke  was  made  Gov- 
ernor of  Erfurt. 

*  The  eldest  son  of  the  Chamberlain.     He  was  afterward  killed  in  Spain, 
f  Whom,  twice  since  then,  we  have  seen  entering  Paris  at  the  head  of  his 
army. 


466  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

The  bulletins  of  this  period  are  especially  remarkable. 
Bonaparte  was  angry  at  having  been  deceived  by  the  Emper- 
or Alexander.  He  had  calculated  on  the  unchanging  neu- 
trality of  Prussia ;  he  was  mortified  at  English  influence  on 
the  Continent ;  and  his  ill  humor  was  perceptible  in  every 
word  dictated  by  him.  He  attacked  in  turn  the  English 
Government,  the  Prussian  nobility,  whom  he  wished  to  de- 
nounce to  the  people,  the  young  Queen,  women,  etc.  Grand 
and  noble  expressions,  often  of  a  poetical  nature,  were  strange- 
ly contrasted  with  abusive  terms.  He  gratified  his  resent- 
ment and  anger,  but  he  lowered  himself  by  giving  such  ex- 
pression to  his  own  feelings,  and,  above  all,  he  sinned  against 
Parisian  good  taste.  We  were  beginning  to  grow  accustomed 
to  military  wonders,  and  the  form  in  which  intelligence  of 
them  was  transmitted  to  us  was  freely  criticised.  After  all, 
the  attention  that  nations  pay  to  the  words  of  kings  is  not 
so  foolish  as  it  may  appear.  The  words  of  sovereigns,  even 
more  than  their  actions,  reveal  their  dispositions,  and  the  dis- 
position of  their  ruler  is  of  primary  importance  to  subjects. 
The  King  of  Prussia,  who  was  now  pushed  to  extremity, 
asked  for  an  armistice  :  it  was  refused,  and  Leipsic  was  taken. 

The  French  marched  across  the  battle-field  of  Rossbach, 
and  the  column  erected  there  in  commemoration  of  our 
former  defeat  was  removed  and  sent  to  Paris. 

On  the  22d  of  October  M.  de  Lucchesini  came  to  our 
headquarters.  He  brought  a  letter  from  the  King  of  Prus- 
sia, the  publication  of  which,  said  the  "  Moniteur,"  *  was 
forbidden  by  the  secrecy  necessary  in  diplomatic  affairs. 
"  But,"  it  continued,  "  the  Emperor's  reply  was  considered 
so  admirable  that  a  few  copies  of  it  have  been  made ;  we 
have  procured  one,  and  we  hasten  to  lay  the  letter  before 
our  readers." 

Every  determination  taken  by  the  Emperor,  from  the 

*  "  Moniteur  "  of  the  30th.  Putting  aside  the  more  or  less  imperative  cir- 
cumstances which  determined  the  King  of  Prussia  to  declare  war,  Bonaparte's 
letter  is  remarkable. 


THE  QUEEN  OF  PRUSSIA.  467 

greatest  to  the  least,  seems  partly  founded  on  the  lion's  rea- 
son in  La  Fontaine's  fable — "  Because  my  name  is  Lign" 

"  The  Prussians  are  surprised  at  the  briskness  of  our  pur- 
suit ;  they  are  probably  accustomed  to  the  manoauvres  of  the 
Seven  Years'  War."  And  when  they  asked  for  three  days' 
truce,  in  order  to  bury  their  dead — "  Think  of  the  living," 
replied  the  Emperor,  "  and  leave  to  us  the  care  of  burying 
the  dead.  That  needs  no  truce."  * 

The  Emperor  reached  Potsdam  on  the  24th  of  October. 
As  may  be  supposed,  he  visited  Sans-Souci,  and  reminiscences 
of  Frederick  the  Great  are  to  be  found  in  the  bulletins. 
"  The  handsome  Emperor  (the  Czar)  and  the  lovely  Queen"  f 
received  fresh  insults  in  these  documents,  from  which  we 
gathered  that  a  war  with  Russia  would  follow  the  Prussian 
war.  Paris  was  thrown  into  consternation ;  the  news  from 
the  seat  of  war  was  read  publicly  at  the  theatres,  but  the 
only  applause  that  greeted  it  was  hired.  "  War,  nothing  but 
war,  is  all  that  is  left  to  us."  Such  words  as  these,  uttered 
with  more  or  less  of  wrath  or  grief,  struck  ominously  on  the 
ear  of  the  adherents  of  the  Emperor,  yet  they  could  not  con- 
tradict them. 

On  the  same  day,  the  25th  of  October,  the  fortress  of 
Spandau  capitulated. 

To  all  these  accounts  of  the  war  was  added  a  letter  sup- 
posed to  be  written  by  a  private  soldier  from  a  town  in  the 
duchy  of  Brunswick.  It  contained  enthusiastic  praise  of 

*  M.  Daru,  Intendant  of  the  Emperor's  household,  was  at  this  period  made 
Intendant  of  the  army.  His  severity  in  raising  the  war  contributions  is  remem- 
bered to  this  day  in  Prussia.  He  left  a  terrible  reputation  behind  him,  and  yet 
those  who  knew  him  well  will  attest  that  he  was  a  man  of  moderate  opinions, 
with  a  taste  for  literature,  and  liked  by  his  friends.  But  at  that  time  obedience 
was  the  first  duty.  The  Emperor  required  it,  both  in  manner  and  matter.  The 
qualities  or  the  vices  of  masters  are  reflected  in  those  who  serve  them. 

f  Bulletin  of  the  17th  of  October:  "The  Queen  is  a  handsome  woman,  but 
she  has  little  intelligence,"  etc.  And  later :  "  It  is  said  in  Berlin,  *  The  Queen 
was  so  good,  so  gentle ! '  But  since  that  fatal  interview  with  the  handsome  Em- 
peror, how  changed  she  is !  " 


468  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

French  valor,  which  it  attributed  to  the  military  system 
adopted  in  our  army.  "It  is  also  certain,"  continues  the 
writer,  "  that  any  soldier  who  can  say  to  himself,  '  It  is  not 
impossible  for  me  to  become  a  Marshal  of  the  Empire,  a 
Prince,  or  a  Duke,  as  it  has  happened  to  others,'  must  be 
greatly  encouraged  by  that  thought.  It  was  quite  another 
thing  at  Rossbach.  The  French  army  was  commanded  then 
by  gentlemen  who  owed  their  military  rank  only  to  their 
birth,  or  to  the  patronage  of  a  Pompadour ;  and  the  troops 
were  of  so-called  soldiers,  on  whose  track,  after  their  defeat, 
were  found  nothing  but  pigtails  and  powdering-bags." 

When  the  Emperor  made  his  entry  into  Berlin  on  the 
26th  of  October,  in  the  midst  of  acclamations,  he  vented  his 
displeasure  on  those  among  the  Prussian  nobles  who  were 
presented  to  him.  "  My  brother  the  King  of  Prussia,"  he 
said,  "  ceased  to  be  King  from  the  day  on  which  he  failed  to 
have  Prince  Louis  hanged,  when  he  dared  to  go  and  break 
his  Minister's  windows."  *  And  to  Count  Nesch  he  said 
roughly,  "  I  will  bring  the  nobles  of  this  Court  down  so  low 
that  they  shall  be  obliged  to  beg  their  bread." 

By  violent  speeches  of  this  kind,  which  were  published, 
the  Emperor  not  only  gratified  his  anger  against  the  instiga- 
tors of  the  war,  but  imagined  that  he  fulfilled  obligations 
toward  our  Revolution.  Although  he  was  a  determined 
counter-revolutionist,  he  was  obliged  from  time  to  time  to 
render  some  homage  to  the  ideas  which,  by  a  fatal  deviation, 
had  produced  his  own  accession.  A  mistaken  longing  for 
equality,  a  noble  desire  for  liberty,  were  the  causes  of  our 
civil  discord ;  but  in  his  thirst  for  power  he  gave  us  no  en- 
couragement toward  that  freedom  which,  if  we  succeed  in 
obtaining  it,  will  be  the  most  glorious  conquest  of  our  times, 
but  limited  himself,  in  his  bargain  with  the  age,  to  advancing 
equality  only.  The  love  of  liberty  is  an  unselfish  sentiment, 
which  a  generous  ruler  ought  at  the  present  day  to  foster  in 

*  The  young  Prince  had  perpetrated  this  garrison  prank  on  M.  Haugwitz's 
windows,  when  the  latter,  having  returned  from  France,  was  advising  peace. 


THE  EMPEROR  AND   THE  REVOLUTION.          469 

his  people ;  but  Bonaparte  only  sought  to  aggrandize  his  own 
power.  Sometimes,  with  entire  f orgetfulness  of  his  own  ori- 
gin, he  spoke  and  acted  as  if  he  were  a  king  by  the  grace 
of  God,  and  then  every  word  of  his  became,  as  it  were,  feu- 
dal ;  while  at  other  times  he  affected  a  sort  of  Jacobinism, 
and  then  he  would  abuse  legitimate  royalty,  treat  our  old 
memories  with  disdain,  and  denounce  the  nobility  to  the  ple- 
beians of  every  country.  Never  did  he  seek  to  establish  the 
true  rights  of  nations  ;  and  the  unostentatious  aristocracy  of 
letters  and  of  a  noble  civilization  was  far  more  displeasing  to 
him,  in  reality,  than  that  of  titles  and  privileges,  which  he 
could  make  use  of  as  he  pleased. 

On  the  29th  of  October  M.  de  Talleyrand  left  Mayence 
to  join  the  Emperor,  who  had  sent  for  him.  M.  de  Remu- 
sat  felt  much  regret  at  his  departure.  He  had  found  his 
society  a  great  resource ;  the  somewhat  solemn  idleness  of 
court  life  made  them  necessary  to  each  other.  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, having  recognized  both  the  trustworthiness  and  the 
superior  abilities  of  my  husband,  would  throw  aside  his 
habitual  reserve  in  his  company,  and  would  confide  to  him 
his  views  on  passing  events  and  his  opinion  of  their  common 
master.  An  aristocrat  by  taste,  by  conviction,  and  by  birth, 
M.  de  Talleyrand  approved  of  Bonaparte's  repression  of  what 
he  regarded  as  the  excesses  of  the  Revolution ;  but  he  would 
have  wished  that  a  headstrong  temper  and  a  determined  will 
had  not  led  the  Emperor  aside  from  a  course  in  which  his 
own  prudent  counsels  might  have  guided  him  aright.  He 
was  thoroughly  conversant  with  the  European  political  situa- 
tion, and  better  versed  in  the  law  of  nations  than  in  their 
true  rights,  and  he  propounded  with  accuracy  the  diplomatic 
course  that  he  would  have  had  the  Emperor  follow.  He  was 
alarmed  at  the  possible  preponderance  of  Russia  in  Europe, 
and  was  in  favor  of  founding  an  independent  power  between 
us  and  the  Russians.  For  this  reason  he  encouraged  the  ar- 
dent, though  vague,  desires  of  the  Poles.  "  A  kingdom  of 
Poland,"  he  used  to  say,  "  ought  to  be  established.  It  would 


470  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

be  the  bulwark  of  our  independence ;  but  it  ought  not  to  be 
done  by  halves."  With  his  head  full  of  this  plan,  he  started 
to  join  the  Emperor,  resolved  on  advising  him  to  turn  his 
brilliant  success  to  good  account. 

After  M.  de  Talleyrand's  departure,  M.  de  Kemusat  wrote 
me  that  the  dullness  of  his  life  was  extreme.  The  Court  at 
Mayence  was  monotonously  regular.  There,  as  elsewhere 
and  in  all  places,  the  Empress  was  gentle,  quiet,  idle,  and 
averse  to  take  anything  on  herself,  because,  whether  far  or 
near,  she  dreaded  the  displeasure  of  her  husband.  Her 
daughter,  who  was  delighted  to  escape  from  her  wretched 
home,  spent  her  time  in  diversions  of  a  nature  somewhat  too 
childish  for  her  rank  and  position.*  Hortense  rejoiced  with 
her  mother  over  the  promising  qualities  of  her  little  son,  then 
full  of  life  and  beauty,  and  very  forward  for  his  years. 

The  German  princes  came  to  pay  their  court  at  Mayence  ; 
great  banquets  were  given ;  elegant  costumes  were  worn ; 
there  was  much  walking  and  driving  about,  and  great  eager- 
ness for  news.  The  Court  wanted  to  return  to  Paris  ;  the 
Empress  wanted  to  go  to  Berlin  ;  and  there,  as  elsewhere,  all 
was  dependent  on  the  will  of  one  man. 

In  Paris  life  was  dull,  but  tranquil.  The  absence  of  the 
Emperor  was  always  a  relief :  if  people  did  not  speak  more 
freely,  they  seemed  better  able  to  breathe,  and  this  sense  of 
alleviation  was  especially  to  be  observed  in  persons  connected 
with  his  Government.  The  impression  produced  by  the  Em- 
peror's victories  became  weaker  every  day ;  and  a  tangible 
proof  was  thus  afforded  to  the  world  that  lasting  national 
enthusiasm  could  no  longer  be  kindled  by  success  in  war. 

Prince  Eugene's  army  was  marching  onward  in  Albania, 

*  It  is  evident  that  Queen  Hortense  and  her  Court  amused  themselves  like 
school-girls.  This  was  a  result  of  their  intimacy  while  at  Mme.  Campan's 
school.  Napoleon  III.  seemed  to  have  inherited  his  mother's  tastes  in  this  re- 
spect. Even  when  long  past  youth,  he  liked  children's  games,  blind-man's-buff 
and  others.  Only  on  these  occasions  did  he  clear  his  brow  and  seem  happy, 
and  even  amiable ;  which  was  by  no  means  the  case  in  his  intercourse  with  the 
world,  social  or  political,  for  his  manner  was  extremely  cold. — P.  R. 


TAKING   OF  LUBECK.  471 

and  Marshal  Marmont  was  holding  in  check  the  Russians, 
who  were  moving  on  that  side.  A  fresh  proclamation  was 
issued  by  the  Emperor  to  his  soldiers :  it  announced  a  rup- 
ture with  Russia  and  an  onward  march,  promised  fresh  tri- 
umphs, and  alluded  to  the  "  love  "  of  Bonaparte  for  his  army. 
Marshal  Brune,*  commanding  the  reserves  stationed  at  Bou- 
logne, issued  on  this  occasion  a  curious  order  of  the  day, 
which  was  published  by  command  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  : 

"  SOLDIEES  :  You  will  read  at  mess,  every  day  for  a  fort- 
night, the  sublime  proclamation  of  his  Majesty  the  Emperor 
and  King  to  the  Grand  Army.  You  will  learn  it  by  heart ; 
each  one  of  you  will  shed  tears  of  courage,  and  will  be  filled 
with  the  irresistible  enthusiasm  inspired  by  heroism." 

In  Paris,  no  one  was  moved  to  tears,  and  the  prolongation 
of  the  war  filled  us  with  dismay. 

Meanwhile,  the  Emperor  remained  at  Berlin,  where  he 
had  established  his  headquarters.  He  announced  in  his  bul- 
letins that  the  great  Prussian  army  had  vanished  like  an 
autumnal  mist,  and  he  ordered  his  lieutenants  to  complete 
the  conquest  of  all  the  Prussian  states.  At  the  same  time  a 
war-tax  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  millions  was  raised ;  the 
towns  surrendered  one  by  one — Kiistrin  and  Stettin  first, 
Magdeburg  a  little  later.  Liibeck,  which  had  offered  resist- 
ance, was  stormed  and  horribly  pillaged;  there  was  fighting 
in  every  street ;  and  I  remember  that  Prince  Borghese,  who 
took  part  in  the  assault,  gave  us  some  particulars  of  the  cru- 
elty practiced  by  the  soldiers  in  that  unfortunate  town. 
"  What  I  then  saw,"  he  told  us,  "  gave  me  an  idea  of  the 
bloodthirsty  intoxication  which  resistance  at  first,  and  victory 
afterward,  can  produce  in  soldiers."  He  added:  "At  such 
a  moment  every  officer  is  a  mere  soldier.  I  was  beyond  all 
self-control ;  I  felt,  like  everybody  else,  a  sort  of  passionate 

*  He  was  massacred  at  Avignon  in  1816.  [In  M.  Jules  Claretie's  "Camille 
Desmoulins,"  an  interesting  account  of  the  early  career  of  Brune  is  to  be  found. 
It  is  to  his  pencil  that  we  owe  the  only  existing  portrait  of  Camille's  wife,  Lu- 
cille.— TRANSLATORS.] 


472  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

longing  to  exert  my  strength  against  people  and  things.  I 
should  be  ashamed  to  recall  some  absurdly  horrible  acts 
which  I  committed.  In  the  midst  of  imminent  danger,  when 
one  must  cut  one's  way  with  the  sword,  with  everything 
around  in  flames,  when  the  thunder  of  cannon  or  the  rattle 
of  musketry  mingles  with  the  cries  of  a  dense  crowd,  in 
which  are  people  pressing  in  every  direction,  either  seeking 
others  or  trying  to  escape  from  them,  and  all  this  in  the  nar- 
row space  of  a  street,  then  a  man  loses  his  head  completely. 
There  is  no  act  of  atrocity  or  of  folly  that  he  will  not  com- 
mit. He  will  wantonly  destroy  without  profit  to  anybody, 
and  will  give  himself  up  to  an  uncontrollable  delirium  of 
evil  passions." 

After  the  fall  of  Liibeck,  Marshal  Bernadotte  remained 
there  some  time  as  governor  of  the  town,  and  it  was  then 
that  he  began  to  lay  the  foundation  of  his  future  greatness. 
He  behaved  with  perfect  equity,  and  did  his  best  to  assuage 
the  evils  that  had  been  caused  by  war.  Strict  discipline  was 
maintained  among  his  troops ;  the  gentleness  of  his  bearing 
attracted  and  consoled,  and  he  won  the  admiration  and  sin- 
cere affection  of  the  people. 

During  the  Emperor's  stay  at  Berlin,  the  Prince  of  Hatz- 
feld,  who  had  remained  there,  and  who,  said  the  bulletins, 
"  had  accepted  the  post  of  governor,"  kept  up  a  secret  corre- 
spondence with  the  King  of  Prussia,  in  which  he  gave  full 
accounts  of  the  movements  of  our  army.  One  of  his  letters 
was  intercepted,  and  the  Emperor  gave  orders  for  his  arrest 
and  trial  before  a  military  court.  His  wife,  who  was  with 
child,  was  in  despair ;  she  obtained  an  audience  of  the  Em- 
peror, and  threw  herself  at  his  feet.  He  showed  her  the 
Prince's  letter,  and  when  the  poor  young  wife  gave  way  to 
her  sorrow,  the  Emperor,  moved  with  pity,  bade  her  rise, 
and  said  to  her:  "You  have  the  original  document,  on 
which  your  husband  may  be  condemned,  in  your  own  hand. 
Take  my  advice ;  profit  by  this  moment  to  burn  it,  and  then 
there  will  be  no  evidence  to  condemn  him."  The  Princess, 


CONGRATULATIONS.  473 

without  a  moment's  delay,  threw  the  paper  into  the  fire,  and 
bathed  the  Emperor's  hands  with  her  tears.  This  anecdote 
made  a  greater  impression  on  Paris  than  all  our  victories.* 

Our  Senate  sent  a  deputation  to  Berlin  with  congratula- 
tions on  so  triumphant  a  campaign.  The  Emperor  intrusted 
the  envoys,  on  their  return  to  Paris,  with  the  sword  of  Fred- 
erick the  Great,  the  ribbon  of  the  Black  Eagle  worn  by  him, 
and  several  flags,  among  which,  says  the  "  Moniteur,"  "  there 
are  several  embroidered  by  the  hands  of  that  fair  Queen 
whose  beauty  has  been  as  fatal  to  the  people  of  Prussia  as 
was  the  beauty  of  Helen  to  the  Trojans." 

Every  day  our  generals  invaded  some  new  district.  The 
King  of  Holland  had  advanced  into  Hanover,  which  was 
again  being  attacked  by  us ;  but  all  at  once  we  heard  that  he 
had  returned  to  his  own  states,  either  because  he  disliked 
acting  merely  as  one  of  his  brother's  lieutenants,  or  because 
Bonaparte  preferred  that  his  conquests  should  be  made  by 
his  own  generals.  Marshal  Mortier  took  possession  of  the 

*  The  Emperor  describes  this  scene  to  the  Empress  in  the  following  terms  : 
"  I  have  received  your  letter.  You  seem  vexed  at  my  speaking  ill  of  women. 
It  is  true  that  I  hate  a  scheming  woman  beyond  everything.  I  am  accustomed 
to  good,  gentle,  and  conciliating  women ;  and  such  women  I  love.  If  I  am 
spoiled  by  them,  it  is  not  my  fault,  but  yours.  But  you  will  see  I  have  been  very 
kind  to  one  good  and  kindly  woman — Mme.  de  Hatzfeld.  When  I  showed  her 
her  husband's  letter,  she  said,  sobbing  and  with  deep  feeling,  but  so  innocently, 
*  Oh,  yes,  that  is  indeed  his  handwriting ! '  As  she  read  it  the  tone  of  her  voice 
went  to  my  heart.  I  felt  sorry  for  her,  and  I  said,  '  Well,  madame,  throw  the 
letter  in  the  fire,  and  I  shall  not  be  able  to  punish  your  husband.'  She  burned 
the  letter  and  seemed  very  happy.  Since  then  her  husband  has  kept  himself 
quiet.  Two  hours  later,  and  he  was  a  lost  man.  So,  you  see,  I  like  women  who 
are  kind  and  simple  and  gentle,  but  it  is  because  they  only  are  like  you. — Ber- 
lin, November  6,  1806,  9  p.  M."  These  stories  concide.  It  was  said,  however, 
at  the  time,  that  the  Emperor,  who  had  made  up  his  mind  to  be  severely  just, 
perceived  that  the  incriminating  letter  was  of  an  anterior  date  to  that  at  which, 
according  to  the  usages  of  war,  it  could  have  been  considered  as  an  act  of  es- 
pial, and  that  the  whole  scene  was  then  arranged  for  dramatic  effect.  Another 
account  was  that  Mme.  de  Hatzfeld  herself,  on  glancing  over  the  letter,  pointed 
out  the  date  to  the  Emperor,  who  immediately  exclaimed,  "  Oh,  then  burn  it ! " — 
P.  R. 


474  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

city  of  Hamburg  on  the  19th  of  November,  and  an  enor- 
mous quantity  of  English  merchandise  was  confiscated.  A 
number  of  auditors  belonging  to  the  Council  of  State  were 
sent  from  Paris ;  among  them  were  M.  d'Houdetot  and  M. 
de  Tournon.*  These  auditors  were  made  Intendants  of 
Berlin,  Bayreuth,  and  other  towns.  By  these  young  and 
active  proconsuls  the  conquered  states  were  governed  in  the 
interests  of  the  conqueror,  and  victory  was  immediately  fol- 
lowed by  an  administration  which  turned  it  to  the  best  ad- 
vantage. 

The  Emperor  gained  the  affections  of  the  young  of  every 
rank,  by  giving  them  opportunities  for  action,  for  self-asser- 
tion, and  for  exercising  an  absolute  authority.  Thus,  he 
often  said,  "  There  is  no  conquest  I  could  not  undertake,  for 
with  the  help  of  my  soldiers  and  my  auditors  I  could  con- 
quer and  rule  the  whole  world."  We  may  suppose  that  the 
habits  and  the  despotic  notions  that  these  young  men  brought 
back  into  their  own  country  were  rather  perilous  when  the 
government  of  French  provinces  was  confided  to  them. 
Most  of  them  found  it  difficult  not  to  rule  those  provinces 
like  a  conquered  country.  These  young  men,  who  were 
raised  early  in  life  to  such  important  posts,  are  at  the  present 
time  idle  and  without  prospects,  owing  to  the  straitening  of 
our  territory.  They  fret  under  their  enforced  idleness,  and 
form  one  of  the  most  serious  difficulties  with  which  the 
King's  Government  is  confronted. 

The  conquest  of  Prussia  was  completed,  and  our  troops 
marched  into  Poland.  The  season  was  far  advanced  ;  they 
had  not  seen  the  Kussians,  but  it  was  known  that  they  were 
approaching;  a  severe  and  difficult  campaign  was  antici- 
pated. The  cold  was  not  severe,  but  the  march  of  our  sol- 
diers was  impeded  by  the  marshy  soil,  in  which  men,  guns, 
and  carriages  were  continually  sinking.  The  accounts  of 
the  sufferings  endured  by  the  army  are  terrible.  Whole 

*  M.  d'Houdetot  became  a  peer  of  France  under  the  Restoration,  and  M.  de 
Tournon  Prefect  of  the  Gironde. — P.  R. 


A  FAMOUS  DECREE.  475 

squadrons  often  sank  up  to  the  middle  of  the  men's  bodies 
in  the  marsh,  and  it  was  impossible  to  save  them  from  a  lin- 
gering death.  Although  the  Emperor  was  determined  to 
make  the  most  of  his  victories,  he  felt  the  necessity  of  giv- 
ing some  repose  to  his  troops,  and  he  eagerly  accepted  the 
King  of  Prussia's  offer  of  a  suspension  of  hostilities,  during 
which  he  was  to  remain  on  one  bank  of  the  Yistula,  and  the 
Prussians  on  the  other.  But  it  is  probable  that  the  condi- 
tions he  annexed  to  this  armistice  were  too  severe,  or  per- 
haps it  was  only  proposed  by  Prussia  in  order  to  gain  time 
and  effect  a  junction  with  the  Russians ;  for  the  negotiations 
dragged  slowly  along,  and  the  Emperor,  on  learning  the 
movements  of  the  Russian  general,  Benningsen,  suddenly 
left  Berlin  on  the  25th  of  November.  He  announced  fresh 
danger  and  fresh  success  to  his  troops  by  the  following 
spirited  words,  with  which  he  closed  his  proclamation: 
"How  should  the  Russians  overthrow  such  designs?  Are 
not  they  and  we  alike  the  soldiers  of  Austerlitz  ? " 

A  famous  decree,  dated  from  Berlin  and  preceded  by  a 
lengthy  preamble,  appeared  at  the  same  time,  in  which  sun- 
dry grievances  were  set  forth.  This  decree  proclaimed  the 
British  Isles  to  be  in  a  state  of  blockade,  and  it  was  only  a 
reprisal  on  the  usage  of  England,  who,  when  she  enters  upon 
a  war,  declares  a  universal  blockade,  and  in  virtue  thereof 
authorizes  her  ships  to  take  possession  of  all  other  vessels  in 
whatsoever  seas.  The  Berlin  decree  divided  the  empire  of 
the  world  in  two,  opposing  the  power  of  the  Continent  to 
the  power  of  the  seas.  Every  Englishman  who  should  be 
found  either  in  France  or  in  any  state  occupied  by  us,  or 
under  our  influence,  was  to  become  a  prisoner  of  war,  and 
this  hard  enactment  was  notified  to  all  our  sovereign  allies. 
Thenceforth  it  was  manifest  that  the  struggle  which  was 
beginning,  between  despotic  power  in  all  its  ramifications 
and  the  strength  of  such  a  constitution  as  that  which  rules 
and  vivifies  the  English  nation,  could  end  only  by  the  com- 
plete destruction  of  one  of  the  assailants.  Despotism  has 


476  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

fallen,  and,  notwithstanding  the  terrible  cost  to  ourselves, 
we  ought  to  be  grateful  to  Providence  for  the  salvation  of 
nations  and  the  lessons  taught  to  posterity. 

On  the  28th  of  November  Murat  made  his  entry  into 
Warsaw.  The  French  were  enthusiastically  received  by 
those  among  the  Poles  who  hoped  that  the  liberty  of  their 
country  would  result  from  our  conquests.  In  the  bulletin 
which  announced  the  entry  these  words  occur :  "  Will  the 
kingdom  of  Poland  be  restored  ?  God  alone,  who  holds  in 
His  hand  the  direction  of  events,  can  be  the  arbiter  of  this 
great  political  problem."  Thenceforth  Bonaparte's  family 
began  to  covet  the  throne  of  Poland.  His  brother  Jerome 
had  some  hopes  of  obtaining  it.  Murat,  who  had  displayed 
brilliant  valor  throughout  all  the  campaign,  was  the  first  to 
be  sent  to  Warsaw,  and  made  his  appearance  there  in  the 
theatrical  costume  that  he  affected — plumed  bonnet,  colored 
boots,  and  richly  laced  cloak.  His  dress  resembled  that  of 
the  Polish  nobles,  and  he  flattered  himself  that  one  day  that 
great  country  would  be  committed  to  his  rule.  His  wife 
received  many  congratulations  in  Paris,  and  this,  perhaps, 
made  the  Emperor,  who  disliked  to  be  forestalled  on  any 
point,  change  his  mind.  I  know  that  the  Empress  also  had 
hopes  of  the  Polish  crown  for  her  son.  When  the  Emperor, 
at  a  later  date,  became  father  of  a  natural  son,  of  whose  fate 
I  am  at  present  uninformed,  the  Poles  fixed  their  hopes  on 
that  child. 

Writers  better  acquainted  with  the  secrets  of  diplomacy 
than  I  may  explain  why  Bonaparte  did  not  carry  out,  but 
merely  sketched,  his  plans  for  Poland,  notwithstanding  his 
own  personal  proclivities  and  M.  de  Talleyrand's  influence 
and  opinions  on  the  subject.  It  may  be  that  events  suc- 
ceeded each  other  with  such  rapidity,  and  clashed  so  rudely, 
that  due  care  could  not  be  bestowed  on  the  projected  enter- 
prise. Subsequently  to  the  Prussian  campaign  and  the  treaty 
of  Tilsit,  the  Emperor  often  regretted  that  he  had  not  pushed 
his  innovations  in  Europe  to  the  extent  of  changing  every 


A   CITIZEN  KING.  4.77 

existing  dynasty.  "  There  is  nothing  to  be  gained,"  he  used 
to  say,  "  by  leaving  any  power  in  the  hands  of  people  whom 
we  have  made  discontented.  There  is  no  use  in  half  mea- 
sures ;  old  works  will  not  drive  new  machines.  I  ought  to 
have  made  all  other  kings  accessory  to  my  own  greatness, 
and,  so  that  they  should  owe  everything  to  me,  they  ought 
not  to  have  had  any  greatness  in  the  past  to  point  to.  Not 
that  in  my  eyes  this  was  of  much  value — certainly  not  of 
value  equal  to  that  of  founding  a  new  race ;  but  nevertheless 
it  has  a  certain  influence  over  mankind.  My  sympathy  with 
certain  sovereigns,  my  compassion  toward  suffering  nations, 
my  fear,  I  know  not  why,  of  causing  an  utter  overthrow  of 
all  things,  withheld  me.  I  have  been  greatly  in  the  wrong, 
and  perhaps  I  may  have  to  pay  for  it  dearly." 

When  the  Emperor  spoke  in  this  sense,  he  took  pains  to 
dwell  on  the  necessity  imposed  by  the  Revolution  of  the 
renewal  of  all  things.  But,  as  I  have  already  said,  he  in  his 
secret  heart  thought  he  had  done  enough  for  the  Revolution 
in  changing  the  frontiers  of  states  and  the  sovereigns  who 
ruled  them.  A  citizen  King,  chosen  either  from  among  his 
own  kinsfolk,  or  from  the  ranks  of  the  army,  ought,  he  con- 
sidered, to  satisfy  all  the  citizen  classes  of  modern  society  by 
his  sudden  elevation ;  and,  provided  the  depotism  of  the  new 
sovereign  could  be  turned  to  the  advantage  of  his  own  pro- 
jects, he  should  not  be  interfered  with.  It  must  be  owned, 
however,  that  if  "  the  spirit  of  the  age,"  as  Bonaparte  called 
it,  had  resulted  only  in  nations  being  governed  by  men  whom 
a  lucky  chance  had  drawn  from  their  native  obscurity,  it  was 
scarcely  worth  while  to  make  such  a  fuss  about  it.  If  we  are 
to  be  ruled  by  a  despot,  surely  the  despot  who  can  point  to 
the  greatness  of  his  ancestors,  and  who  exercises  his  author- 
ity in  virtue  of  ancient  rights  made  sacred  by  ancient  glory, 
or  even  in  virtue  of  rights  whose  origin  is  lost  in  the  obscu- 
rity of  ages,  is  the  least  mortifying  to  human  pride. 

At  the  close  of  the  war  Poland  found  that  she  was  free 
only  in  that  portion  of  the  country  which  had  been  seized 


478  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

by  Prussia.  His  treaties  with  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  the 
temporary  need  of  repose,  the  fear  of  displeasing  Austria  by 
interfering  with  her  possessions,  cramped  Bonaparte's  plans. 
It  may  be  that  they  could  not  have  been  carried  out ;  but, 
being  only  half  attempted,  they  bore  within  them  the  ele- 
ments of  their  own  destruction. 

The  advantages  and  disadvantages  of  the  continental 
policy  with  regard  to  the  English  nation  have  often  been 
discussed.  I  am  not  competent  either  to  state  the  objections 
raised  to  this  system  or  the  reasons  for  which  many  disinter- 
ested persons  approve  of  it;  still  less  would  I  venture  to 
draw  hasty  conclusions.  The  system  in  question  imposed 
conditions  on  the  allies  of  France  which  were  too  much  in 
opposition  to  their  interests  to  be  long  endured  by  them ; 
for,  although  it  encouraged  continental  industry,  it  interfered 
with  the  luxuries  of  life,  and  with  some  few  of  its  daily  ne- 
cessaries. It  was  also  felt  to  be  an  act  of  tyranny.  More- 
over, it  caused  every  Englishman  to  share  the  aversion  of 
the  British  Government  toward  Bonaparte,  because  an  at- 
tack upon  trade  is  an  attack  on  the  fountain-head  of  every 
Englishman's  existence.  Thus  the  war  with  us  became  a 
national  one  for  our  enemies,  and  from  that  time  was  vigor- 
ously carried  on  by  the  English. 

Meanwhile  I  have  heard  it  said  by  well-informed  persons 
that  the  consequence  of  this  rigorous  policy  would  in  the 
end  strike  a  fatal  blow  at  the  English  Constitution,  and  that 
on  this  account  especially  it  was  advantageous  to  pursue  it. 
The  English  Government  was  obliged,  in  order  to  act  with 
the  same  rapidity  as  the  enemy,  to  encroach  little  by  little 
on  the  rights  of  the  people.  The  people  made  no  opposition, 
because  they  felt  the  necessity  of  resistance.  Parliament, 
less  jealous  of  its  liberties,  would  not  venture  on  any  opposi- 
tion ;  and  by  degrees  the  English  were  becoming  a  military 
people.  The  national  debt  was  increased,  in  order  to  afford 
supplies  to  the  coalition  and  the  army ;  the  executive  was 
becoming  accustomed  to  encroachments  which  had  been  tol- 


APPOINTMENTS  AND  DECREES.  479 

erated  in  the  beginning,  and  it  would  willingly  have  main- 
tained them  as  an  acquired  right.  Thus,  the  strained  situa- 
tion into  which  every  Government  was  forced  by  the  Em- 
peror was  changing  the  Constitution  of  Great  Britain,  and 
possibly,  had  the  continental  system  lasted  for  a  length  of 
time,  the  English  could  only  have  recovered  their  liberties 
through  violence  or  sedition.  This  was  the  Emperor's  secret 
hope.  He  fomented  rebellion  in  Ireland ;  supported  as  he 
was  by  every  absolute  sovereign  on  the  Continent,  he  helped 
and  protected  the  Opposition  in  England  by  all  the  means 
in  his  power,  while  the  London  newspapers  in  his  pay  stirred 
up  the  people  to  claim  their  liberties. 

At  a  later  period  I  heard  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  was 
greatly  alarmed  at  this  contest,  express  himself  with  more 
warmth  than  he  usually  displays  in  stating  his  opinions. 
"  Tremble,  foolish  people  that  you  are,"  said  he,  "  at  the 
Emperor's  success  over  the  English  ;  for,  if  the  English  Con- 
stitution is  destroyed,  understand  clearly  that  the  civilization 
of  the  world  will  be  shaken  to  its  very  foundations." 

Before  leaving  Berlin  the  Emperor  issued  several  decrees, 
dated  thence,  showing  that,  although  he  was  at  the  camp,  he 
had  both  leisure  and  will  to  attend  to  other  pursuits  besides 
those  of  war.  Such  were  the  appointment  of  certain  pre- 
fects, a  decree  for  the  organization  of  the  Naval  Office,  and 
one  designating  the  site  of  the  Madeleine,  on  the  Boule- 
vard, for  the  monument  to  be  erected  to  the  glory  of  the 
French  army.  Competition  for  designs  for  this  monument 
was  invited  by  circulars  from  the  Minister  of  the  Interior, 
which  were  distributed  in  every  direction.  Numerous  pro- 
motions were  made  in  the  army,  and  there  was  a  general  dis- 
tribution of  crosses. 

On  the  25th  of  November  the  Emperor  departed  for 
Posen.  The  bad  state  of  the  roads  obliged  him  to  exchange 
his  traveling-carriage  for  a  country  wagon.  The  Grand  Mar- 
shal of  the  Palace  was  overturned  in  his  caleche,  and  dislo- 
cated his  collar  bone.  The  same  accident  happened  to  M.  de 
36 


4:80  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Talleyrand's  carriage,  but  he  escaped  without  hurt ;  on  ac- 
count of  his  lameness,  he  had  to  remain  four  and  twenty 
hours  on  the  road  in  his  overturned  carriage,  until  means 
could  be  found  to  enable  him  to  continue  his  journey.  About 
this  time  he  took  occasion  to  answer  a  letter  I  had  written  to 
him.  "I  reply  to  your  letter,"  he  writes,  "in  the  midst  of 
the  mud  of  Poland ;  next  year,  perhaps,  I  may  address  you 
from  the  sandy  deserts  of  I  know  not  what  country.  I  beg 
you  to  remember  me  in  your  prayers."  The  Emperor  was 
only  too  much  inclined  to  despise  the  obstacles  that  destroyed 
part  of  his  army.  Moreover,  it  was  imperative  to  march  on- 
ward. The  Russians  were  advancing,  and  he  did  not  choose 
to  await  them  in  Prussia. 

On  the  2d  of  December  the  Senate  was  convoked  in 
Paris.  The  Arch-Chancellor  read  a  letter  from  the  Emper- 
or, giving  an  account  of  his  victories,  promising  others  in 
the  future,  and  requesting  a  senatus  consultum  which  should 
order  an  immediate  levy  of  the  conscripts  of  1807.  This 
levy,  in  ordinary  times,  was  made  in  September  only.  A 
commission  was  appointed  for  form's  sake.  This  commis- 
sion sat  in  consultation  upon  the  request  for  one  morning 
only,  and  the  next  day  but  one — that  is,  on  the  4th— the 
senatus  consultum  was  reported. 

It  was  also  about  this  epoch  that  the  dispute  between  the 
Academy  and  Cardinal  Maury  was  settled.  The  Emperor  de- 
cided the  question,  and  a  long  article  appeared  anonymously 
in  the  "  Moniteur,"  which  ended  with  these  words :  "  The 
Academy,  doubtless,  has  no  wish  to  deprive  a  man,  whose 
great  abilities  were  conspicuous  during  a  time  of  civil  dis- 
cord, of  a  right  which  custom  confers  upon  him.  His  ad- 
mission to  the  Academy  was  another  step  toward  the  entire 
oblivion  of  past  events  which  can  alone  insure  the  duration 
of  the  tranquillity  that  has  been  restored  to  us.  This  is  a 
long  article  on  a  subject  which  is  apparently  of  very  small 
importance;  nevertheless,  the  light  in  which  some  persons 
have  endeavored  to  place  it  gives  rise  to  serious  considera- 


THE  KING   OF  SAXONY.  481 

tion.  We  perceive  to  what  fluctuations  we  should  once 
more  be  exposed,  into  what  uncertainty  we  should  again  be 
thrown,  only  that  fortunately  for  us  the  helm  of  the  state  is  in 
the  hands  of  a  pilot  whose  arm  is  strong,  whose  steering  is 
steady,  and  who  has  but  one  aim  in  view — the  happiness  of 
the  country."  * 

While  Bonaparte  forced  his  soldiers  to  endure  terrible 
hardships  of  all  kinds  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war,  he  lost 
no  opportunity  of  proving  that  nothing  interfered  with  the 
interest  he,  in  the  midst  of  camps,  took  in  the  progress  of 
civilization. 

An  order  of  the  day,  dated  from  headquarters  of  the 
Grand  Army,  is  as  follows  :  "  In  the  name  of  the  Emperor. 
The  University  of  Jena,  its  professors,  teachers,  and  students, 
its  possessions,  revenues,  and  other  prerogatives  whatsoever, 
are  placed  under  the  special  protection  of  the  commanders 
of  the  French  and  allied  troops.  The  course  of  study  will 
be  continued.  Students  are  consequently  authorized  to  re- 
turn to  Jena,  and  it  is  the  Emperor's  intention  to  favor  that 
town  as  much  as  possible." 

The  King  of  Saxony,  subdued  by  the  power  of  the  con- 
queror, broke  off  his  alliance  with  Prussia  and  concluded  a 
treaty  with  the  Emperor.  During  a  long  reign  this  prince 
had  enjoyed  the  blessings  of  peace  and  order.  Yenerated 
by  his  subjects,  and  occupied  solely  with  their  welfare,  no- 
thing but  the  hurricane  of  Bonaparte's  success  could  have 
brought  the  horrors  of  war  among  the  peaceful  valleys  of 
his  kingdom.  He  was  too  weak  to  resist  the  shock ;  he  sub- 
mitted, and  tried  to  save  his  people  by  accepting  the  victor's 
terms.  But  his  fidelity  to  treaties  could  not  save  him,  be- 
cause Saxony  subsequently  became  of  necessity  the  battle- 

*  I  was  under  the  impression  that  the  grave  dispute  between  Cardinal  Maury 
and  the  Institute  was  finally  decided  against  the  claims  of  the  former.  At  any 
rate,  many  years  later,  M.  de  Salvandy,  in  receiving  the  Bishop  of  Orleans  into 
the  Academy,  addressed  him  as  Monsieur.  He  was  guided  probably  by  prece- 
dent, and  no  question  was  raised  on  the  subject. — P.  R. 


482  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

field  on  which  the  neighboring  sovereigns  contended  more 
than  once  for  victory. 

Meanwhile,  Paris  and  its  inhabitants  became  every  day 
more  gloomy.  The  bulletins  contained  only  vague  accounts 
of  bloody  conflicts,  with  small  results.  It  was  easy  to  infer, 
from  occasional  allusions  to  the  severity  of  the  season  and  the 
ruggedness  of  the  country,  that  our  soldiers  had  great  obsta- 
cles to  surmount  and  much  suffering  to  bear.  Private  letters, 
although  cautiously  written,  or  they  would  not  have  reached 
their  destination,  betrayed  general  anxiety  and  distress.  The 
least  movements  of  our  army  were  represented  as  victories, 
but  the  Emperor's  very  triumphs  involved  him  in  difficulty. 

The  distinct  advantage  with  which  the  campaign  had 
opened  made  the  Parisians  hard  to  please  as  the  war  went  on. 
Much  trouble  was  taken  to  keep  up  the  enthusiasm.  The 
bulletins  were  solemnly  read  at  the  theatres  ;  guns  were  fired 
from  the  Invalides  immediately  on  receipt  of  news  from  the 
army ;  poets  were  paid  for  hastily  written  odes,  chants  of 
victory,  and  interludes,  which  were  splendidly  represented 
at  the  Opera,*  and  on  the  following  day  articles  written  to 
order  commented  on  the  heartiness  of  the  applause.f 

*  The  Emperor  frequently  rebukes  the  haste  of  those  who  were  commissioned 
to  sound  his  praises  at  the  Paris  theatres.  He  writes  to  Cambaeeres  from  Ber- 
lin, on  the  21st  of  November,  1806  :  "  If  the  army  tries  its  best  to  do  honor  to 
the  nation,  it  must  be  owned  that  literary  men  do  much  to  discredit  it.  I  read 
yesterday  the  wretched  verses  that  were  sung  at  the  Opera.  Really  they  are 
quite  a  mockery.  How  can  you  allow  impromptus  to  be  sung  at  the  Opera  ? 
They  are  only  fit  for  vaudevilles.  Express  my  displeaaure  to  M.  de  Lusay.  He 
and  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  could  surely  get  something  passable  composed ; 
but,  to  insure  this,  it  must  not  be  represented  earlier  than  three  months  after  it 
is  ordered.  People  complain  that  we  have  no  literature ;  that  is  the  fault  of  the 
Minister  of  the  Interior.  It  is  absurd  to  order  an  eclogue  as  you  might  order  a 
gown."  He  meant,  apparently,  that  the  victories  of  Jena  and  Eylau  should  have 
been  foreseen  three  months  beforehand.  M.  de  Lu9ay,  a  Chamberlain,  had 
charge  of  the  theatres  in  the  absence  of  the  superintendent,  the  First  Chamber- 
lain, who  was  detained,  as  we  have  seen,  at  Mayence. — P.  R. 

f  Quotation  from  the  "  Moniteur  " :  "  Last  night  the  following  words  were 
read  at  the  Opera  House  :  *  The  Emperor  is  in  the  enjoyment  of  perfect  health.' 
It  is  impossible  to  conceive  the  enthusiasm  produced  by  these  words." 


BATTLE  OF  EYLATT.  483 

The  Empress,  who  was  restless,  idle,  and  tired  of  May- 
ence,  wrote  continually,  begging  to  be  allowed  to  go  to  Ber- 
lin. The  Emperor  was  on  the  point  of  yielding  to  her,  and 
I  learned  from  M.  de  Remusat  with  fresh  sorrow  that  in  all 
probability  his  absence  would  be  prolonged.  But  the  arrival 
of  the  Eussians,  and  the  obligation  he  was  under  of  march- 
ing into  Poland,  made  Bonaparte  change  his  mind.  More- 
over, he  was  informed  that  Paris  was  dull,  and  that  the 
tradespeople  were  complaining  of  the  harm  done  them  by 
the  general  uneasiness.  He  sent  orders  to  his  wife  to  return 
to  the  Tuileries,  there  to  keep  up  the  accustomed  splendor 
of  her  Court,  and  we  all  received  commands  to  amuse  our- 
selves ostentatiously.* 

Meanwhile,  after  a  few  partial  engagements,  the  Emper- 
or determined  on  going  into  winter  quarters ;  but  the  Rus- 
sians, who  were  better  used  to  the  severity  of  the  climate  and 
the  rudeness  of  the  country,  would  not  allow  of  this,  and  after 
measuring  their  strength  in  some  bloody  encounters,  where 
our  success  was  dearly  bought,  the  two  armies  met  face  to 
face  near  the  village  of  Preussisch  Eylau,  which  has  given  its 
name  to  a  sanguinary  battle.  One  shudders  even  now  at  the 
description  of  that  terrible  day.  The  cold  was  piercing, 
and  the  snow  f ailing  fast ;  but  the  opposition  of  the  elements 
only  increased  the  ferocity  of  both  armies.  For  twelve  hours 
they  fought,  without  either  side  being  able  to  claim  the  vic- 
tory. The  loss  of  men  was  immense.  Toward  evening  the 
Russians  retreated  in  good  order,  leaving  a  considerable  num- 
ber of  their  wounded  on  the  field  of  battle.  Both  sovereigns, 
Russian  and  French,  ordered  the  Te  Deum  to  be  sung.  The 
fact  is,  this  horrible  butchery  was  to  no  purpose,  and  the 
Emperor  afterward  said  that,  if  the  Russian  army  had  at- 
tacked him  on  the  following  day,  it  is  probable  he  would 
have  been  beaten.  But  this  wras  an  additional  reason  for 
him  to  exult  over  the  victory  loudly.  He  wrote  to  the  bish- 

*  On  this  occasion  M.  de  Talleyrand  said  :  "  Ladies,  this  is  no  laughing  mat- 
ter ;  the  Emperor  insists  on  your  amusing  yourselves." 


484  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

ops,  informed  the  Senate  of  his  alleged  success,  contradicted 
in  his  own  journals  the  foreign  versions  of  the  event,  and 
concealed  as  much  as  possible  the  losses  that  we  had  sus- 
tained. It  is  said  that  he  visited  the  battle-field,  and  that 
the  awful  spectacle  made  a  great  impression  on  him.  This 
would  seem  to  be  true,  because  the  bulletin  in  which  the  fact 
is  stated  is  written  in  a  very  simple  style,  unlike  that  of  the 
others,  in  which  he  generally  figures  in  a  theatrical  atti- 
tude. 

On  his  return,  he  ordered  a  very  fine  painting  from  Gros 
the  artist,  in  which  he  is  represented  among  the  dead  and 
dying,  lifting  his  eyes  to  heaven,  as  if  praying  for  resigna- 
tion. The  expression  given  to  him  by  the  painter  is  ex- 
tremely beautiful.  I  have  often  gazed  at  the  picture  with 
emotion,  hoping  with  all  my  heart — for  it  still  desired  to 
cling  to  him — that  such  had  really  been  the  expression  of 
his  countenance  on  that  occasion.* 

M.  Denon,  Director  of  the  Museum,  and  one  of  the  most 
obsequious  servants  of  the  Emperor,  always  followed  him  in 
his  campaigns,  in  order  to  select  objects  of  value  in  every 
conquered  city,  to  add  to  the  treasures  of  that  magnificent 
collection.  He  fulfilled  his  task  with  exactness,  which, 
people  said,  resembled  rapacity,  and  he  was  accused  of  ap- 
propriating a  share  of  the  plunder.  Our  soldiers  knew  him 
only  by  the  name  of  "  The  Auctioneer."  After  the  battle 
of  Eylau,  and  while  at  Warsaw,  he  received  orders  to  have 
a  monument  erefcted  in  commemoration  of  the  day.  The 
more  doubtful  it  was,  the  more  the  Emperor  insisted  on  its 
being  held  to  be  a  victory.  Denon  sent  to  Paris  a  poetical 
account  of  the  Emperor's  visit  to  the  wounded.  Many  per- 
sons have  declared  that  the  painting  by  Gros  represented  a 
fiction,  like  that  of  the  visit  to  the  pest-stricken  at  Jaffa. 
But  why  should  it  be  denied  that  Bonaparte  could  sometimes 
feel? 

*  In  a  bulletin  of  the -time  we  read  as  follows  :  "  Such  a  spectacle  is  calcu- 
lated to  inspire  princes  with  a  love  of  peace  and  a  horror  of  war," 


BATTLE  OF  EYLAU.  485 

The  subject  was  open  to  competition  among  our  principal 
painters.  A  considerable  number  of  sketches  were  sent  in. 
Gros  obtained  every  vote,  and  the  choice  fell  upon  him. 

The  battle  of  Eylau  was  fought  on  the  10th  of  February, 

1807. 


CHAPTEE   XXIII. 

(1807.) 

The  Return  of  the  Empress  to  Paris— The  Imperial  Family— Junot— Fouch6— • The 
Queen  of  Holland— Levy  of  the  Conscripts  of  1808— Theatricals  at  Court— Let- 
ter from  the  Emperor— Siege  of  Dantzic— Death  of  the  Empress  of  Austria- 
Death  of  Queen  Hortense's  Son— M.  Decazes— The  Emperor's  Want  of  Feeling.. 

AFTER  the  battle  of  Eylau,  both  armies  were  forced  to 
come  to  a  halt,  in  consequence  of  the  confusion  produced  by 
a  thaw,  and  both  went  into  winter  quarters.  Our  troops 
were  in  cantonments  near  Marienwerder,  and  the  Emperor 
established  himself  in  a  country-house  near  Osterode.* 

The  Empress  had  returned  to  Paris  at  the  end  of  Janu- 
ary. She  was  out  of  spirits,  vaguely  anxious,  and  not  over- 
pleased  with  those  members  of  the  Court  who  had  accom- 
panied her  to  Mayence.  Besides  this,  she  was  in  a  state  of 
nervousness,  as  she  always  was  during  the  Emperor's  absence, 
for  she  dreaded  his  disapproval  of  her  actions.  She  was  most 
gracious,  and  showed  all  her  former  friendship  for  me.  It 
was  said  by  some  members  of  the  Court  that  her  low  spirits 
were  partly  caused  by  tender  feelings  which  she  entertained 
toward  a  certain  young  equerry,  then  absent  with  the  Em- 
peror. I  never  inquired  into  the  truth  of  this  story,  nor  did 
she  ever  mention  it  to  me ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  she  was  dis- 
tressed by  the  stories  she  was  told  by  some  Polish  ladies  then 
in  Paris,  concerning  the  Emperor  and  a  young  countrywoman 

*  The  Emperor  took  up  his  residence  at  Osterode,  or  in  the  neighborhood,  on 
the  22d  of  February,  1807.— P.  R. 


THE  RETURN  OF  THE  EMPRESS  TO  PARIS.      487 

of  theirs.  Her  affection  for  her  husband  was  always  dashed, 
with  the  dread  of  divorce ;  and,  of  all  her  feelings,  this  was, 
I  believe,  the  strongest.  She  would  occasionally  introduce 
a  few  words  on  the  subject  in  her  letters  to  Bonaparte,  but 
he  never  made  the  least  reply  to  them.* 

She  tried  to  conform  to  the  Emperor's  wishes.  She  gave 
and  accepted  invitations,  and  could  at  any  time  find  relief 
from  her  cares  in  the  delight  of  displaying  a  magnificent 
dress.  She  behaved  to  her  sisters-in-law  coldly,  but  with 
prudence ;  she  received  a  great  number  of  persons,  and  al- 
ways graciously,  and  she  never  said  a  word  that  was  not 
studiously  insignificant. 

I  once  suggested  to  her  that  she  might  divert  her  mind 
by  going  to  the  theatre ;  but  she  told  me  that  she  did  not 
derive  enough  amusement  from  the  plays  to  go  incognito, 
and  that  she  could  not  venture  to  go  publicly.  "  Why,  ma- 
dame?"  I  asked  her.  "I  think  the  applause  you  would 
receive  would  be  pleasing  to  the  Emperor."  "  You  do  not 
know  him,  then,"  was  her  reply.  "  If  I  was  received  with 
much  cordiality,  I  am  sure  he  would  be  jealous  of  any  little 
triumph  which  he  would  not  have  shared.  "When  I  am  ap- 
plauded he  likes  to  take  part  in  my  success ;  and  I  should 
only  mortify  him  by  seeking  any  when  he  can  not  be  present." 

The  uneasiness  of  the  Empress  Josephine  was  increased 
by  any  appearance  of  mutual  understanding  between  several 
persons  about  her ;  she  always  imagined  they  were  conspir- 
ing to  injure  her.  Bonaparte  had  infected  her  with  his  habit- 
ual suspicion.  She  felt  no  fear  of  Mme.  Joseph  Bonaparte, 

*  The  Emperor's  Correspondence,  published  in  the  reign  of  Napoleon  III., 
reveals  some  replies  which  Josephine  did  not  confide  to  her  friend.  For  in- 
stance, in  a  letter  of  the  31st  of  December,  1806,  he  says  :  "  I  laughed  heartily 
over  your  last  letters.  Polish  ladies  are  not  so  lovely  as  you  imagine.  I  re- 
ceived your  letter  in  a  wretched  barn,  in  the  midst  of  storm  and  wind,  and 
where  straw  was  my  only  bed."  A  few  days  later  he  writes  from  Warsaw, 
January  19,  1807 :  "  My  dearest,  I  am  grieved  at  the  tone  of  your  letters,  and 
at  what  I  hear  about  you.  I  forbid  tears,  sadness,  and  anxiety ;  you  must  be 
gay,  bright,  and  happy."— P.  R. 


488  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

who,  although  at  that  time  Queen  of  Naples,  was  residing 
quietly  at  the  Luxembourg  Palace,  being  reluctant  to  exchange 
her  peaceful  life  for  that  of  a  sovereign.  The  two  Princes — 
one  the  Arch-Chancellor,  the  other  the  Arch-Treasurer  of 
the  Empire — were  timorous  and  reserved ;  they  paid  her  an 
assiduous  court,  and  inspired  her  with  no  distrust. 

Princess  Borghese,  who  combined  constant  ill  health  with 
a  life  of  intrigue,  joined  in  no  political  schemes,  excepting 
such  as  were  common  to  the  whole  family.  But  the  Grand 
Duchess  of  Berg  caused  her  sister-in-law  constant  jealousy 
and  apprehension.  She  lived  in  great  splendor  at  the  Elysee- 
Bourbon  Palace.  Her  beauty  was  set  off  by  the  most  exqui- 
site dress ;  her  pretensions  were  great,  her  manners  affable 
when  she  thought  it  prudent,  and  more  than  affable  to  men 
whom  she  wished  to  fascinate.  She  was  unscrupulous  when 
intent  on  injuring,  and  she  hated  the  Empress,  yet  never  lost 
her  self-control.  Of  such  a  woman  Josephine  might  well  be 
afraid.  At  this  time,  as  I  have  said,  Caroline  was  desirous 
of  obtaining  the  crown  of  Poland,  and  she  endeavored  to 
make  friends  among  the  influential  members  of  the  Govern- 
ment who  might  be  useful  to  her.  General  Junot,  Govern- 
or of  Paris,  became  one  of  her  ardent  admirers,  and,  either 
from  a  reciprocal  feeling  or  from  interested  motives,  she  con- 
trived to  make  his  tender  sentiments  serve  her  purpose ;  so 
that  the  Governor  of  Paris,  in  his  reports  to  the  Emperor — a 
certain  branch  of  police  being  in  his  charge — always  gave 
favorable  accounts  of  the  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg. 

Another  intimacy,  in  which  there  was  no  question  of  love, 
but  which  was  of  great  use  to  her,  was  that  between  Fouche 
and  herself.  Fouche  was  on  bad  terms  with  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, who  was  no  favorite  of  Mme.  Murat's.  She  wanted  to 
secure  her  present  position,  and  especially  to  elevate  her  hus- 
band in  spite  of  himself.  She  hinted  to  the  Minister  of  Po- 
lice that  M.  de  Talleyrand  would  contrive  to  have  him  re- 
moved, and  she  tried  to  gain  his  affection  by  a  number  of 
other  little  confidential  communications.  This  intimacy  gave 


THE  QUEEN  OF  HOLLAND.  489 

daily  recurring  distress  to  the  poor  frightened  Empress,  who 
narrowly  watched  all  her  words  and  actions.  Parisian  soci- 
ety concerned  itself  little  with  these  Court  secrets,  and  took 
no  interest  in  the  members  of  the  Court  circle.  We  had  the 
appearance  of  being,  and  we  were  in  fact,  merely  a  living 
puppet-show,  set  up  to  surround  the  Emperor  with  what 
seemed  to  him  necessary  state.  The  conviction  that  no  one 
had  any  influence  over  him  led  people  to  concern  themselves 
little  with  his  surroundings.  Every  one  knew  beforehand 
that  his  will  only  would  finally  determine  all  things. 

Meanwhile,  the  sovereigns  who  were  either  related  or 
allied  to  the  Emperor  sent  deputations  to  Poland,  to  con- 
gratulate him  on  his  victories.  From  Naples,  Amsterdam, 
and  Milan  came  envoys  to  Warsaw,  offering  homage  from 
the  various  states.  The  kingdom  of  Naples  was  disquieted 
by  disturbances  in  Calabria  only,  but  this  was  enough  to  keep 
it  in  agitation.  The  new  King,  a  lover  of  pleasure,  did  not 
carry  out  with  sufficient  firmness  the  plan  which  the  Em- 
peror had  laid  down  for  the  kingdoms  he  had  called  into 
existence.  The  Emperor  also  found  fault  with  his  brother 
Louis ;  but  those  reproaches  did  honor  to  the  latter. 

Louis's  domestic  affairs  became  every  day  more  deplora- 
ble. Mme.  Louis,  who  had  enjoyed  some  liberty  at  Mayence, 
no  doubt  found  it  hard  to  return  to  the  dreary  bondage  in 
which  she  was  held  by  her  husband ;  and  the  depression, 
which  she  did  not  sufficiently  conceal,  embittered  him,  per- 
haps, still  more.  The  division  between  them  increased  until 
they  lived  apart  in  the  palace — she  in  retirement  with  two 
or  three  of  her  ladies,  and  he  immersed  in  affairs,  and  making 
no  secret  of  his  dissatisfaction  with  his  wife.  He  would  not 
allow  the  Dutch  to  impute  all  the  blame  of  the  notorious 
domestic  troubles  to  him.  Who  can  say  to  what  such  a 
position  of  affairs  might  have  led,  but  for  the  common 
misfortune  which  shortly  fell  upon  the  unhappy  pair,  and 
which  drew  them  together  in  a  common  sorrow  ? 

Toward  the  end  of  the  winter  an  order  from  the  Em- 


4:90  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  LE  R&MUSAT. 

peror  reached  Paris,  to  the  effect  that  the  newspapers  were 
to  remind  persons  distinguished  either  in  art  or  science 
that  the  decree,  dated  from  Aix-la-Chapelle,  24th  Fructidor, 
year  12,*  concerning  the  decennial  prizes,  was  to  come  into 
effect  at  the  expiration  of  one  year  and  eight  months  from 
the  then  date.  This  decree  promised  considerable  rewards 
to  every  author  of  an  important  work,  of  any  kind  whatsoever. 
The  prizes  were  to  be  assigned  at  intervals  of  ten  years, 
dating  from  the  18th  Brumaire,  and  the  jury  which  was  to 
allot  them  was  to  consist  of  members  of  the  Institute.  This 
project  has  real  greatness  in  it ;  we  shall  see,  hereafter,  how 
it  fell  to  pieces  in  consequence  of  a  fit  of  ill  humor  on  the 
part  of  the  Emperor. 

In  March  the  Yice-Queen  of  Italy  gave  birth  to  a  daugh- 
ter, and  the  Empress  was  much  pleased  at  being  grand- 
mother to  a  little  princess  related  to  all  the  greatest  powers 
in  Europe. 

During  the  suspension  of  war  on  both  sides,  from  the 
inclemency  of  the  season,  the  Emperor  took  every  means  to 
insure  that  in  the  spring  his  army  should  be  more  formidable 
than  ever.  The  kingdoms  of  Italy  and  Naples  had  to  furnish 
further  contingents.  Men  born  under  the  smiling  skies  of 
those  beautiful  lands  were  suddenly  transported  to  the  wild 
banks  of  the  Vistula ;  and  they  might  wonder  at  the  change, 
until  others  were  seen  marching  from  Cadiz,  to  perish  be- 
neath the  walls  of  Moscow,  thus  affording  a  proof  of  the 
courage  and  strength  of  which  men  are  capable,  and  also  of 
what  can  be  done  by  the  strength  of  the  human  will.  The 
army  was  reorganized ;  our  newspapers  were  filled  with  col- 
umns of  promotions,  and  it  is  curious,  among  these  military 
decrees,  to  come  upon  one  dated,  like  the  rest,  from  Osterode, 
appointing  bishops  to  vacant  sees  both  in  France  and  in  Italy. 

But,  notwithstanding  our  victories,  or  perhaps  because  of 
them,  our  army  had  suffered  considerable  loss.  The  extreme 
humidity  of  the  climate  caused  sickness  among  the  troops. 

*  September  11,  1804.— P.  R. 


LEVY  OF  THE  CONSCRIPTS  OF  1808.  491 

Russia  was  evidently  about  to  make  an  immense  effort.  The 
Emperor  felt  that  this  campaign  must  be  decisive ;  and,  not 
feeling  satisfied  that  the  numerous  troops  furnished  to  him 
were  sufficient  to  insure  victory,  he  put  his  own  power  and 
our  submission  to  the  test.  After  having,  at  the  end  of  De- 
cember, 1806,  levied  the  conscription  for  1807,  he  demanded 
from  the  Senate  in  April  the  levy  for  1808.  The  Prince  of 
ISTeufchatel's  report,  which  was  published  in  the  "  Moniteur," 
announced  that  during  the  year  the  army  had  been  augmented 
by  one  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  men,  levied  by  the  con- 
scriptions of  1806  and  1807;  sixteen  thousand  men  were 
non-combatants  either  from  sickness  or  superannuation,  and, 
without  troubling  himself  with  calculations,  which  it  was  too 
certain  no  one  would  venture  to  make,  because  it  was  our 
system  to  conceal  our  losses,  he  put  down  the  "  casualties  " 
of  the  campaign  at  fourteen  thousand  men.  As  our  army 
had  been  increased  by  only  a  hundred  and  thirty  thousand 
efficient  soldiers,  prudence  required  that  the  eighty  thousand 
men  of  the  conscription  of  1808  should  be  raised,  and  drilled, 
each  in  his  own  department.  "  Were  this  delayed,"  said  the 
report,  "  the  men  would  have  to  march  at  once  to  the  seat 
of  war ;  but,  by  making  the  levy  six  months  in  advance,  they 
will  acquire  strength  and  knowledge,  and  will  be  better  able 
to  defend  themselves." 

State  Councilor  Regnault  de  St.  Jean  d' Angely,  who  was 
the  bearer  of  the  Imperial  message  to  the  Senate,  paused 
when  he  came  to  this  portion  of  the  report,  and  called  the 
attention  of  the  Senators  to  the  paternal  goodness  of  the  Em- 
peror, who  would  not  allow  the  new  conscripts  to  brave  the 
dangers  of  war  without  some  previous  preparation.  The 
Emperor's  letter  announced  that  the  whole  of  Europe  was 
again  in  arms — that  two  hundred  thousand  recruits  had  been 
raised  in  England ;  and  declared  his  own  desire  for  peace,  on 
condition  that  the  English  were  not  prompted  by  passion  to 
seek  their  own  prosperity  in  our  abasement. 

The  Senate  passed  the  required  decree,  and  voted  an  ad- 


492  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

dress  of  congratulation  and  thanks  to  the  Emperor.  He  must 
have  smiled  on  receiving  it. 

The  minds  of  men  who  wield  absolute  power  need  to  be 
very  generous,  in  order  to  resist  the  temptation  to  despise 
the  human  species — a  temptation  which  is  only  too  well  jus- 
tified by  the  submission  that  is  accorded  to  them.  When 
Bonaparte  beheld  a  whole  nation  giving  him  its  life-blood 
and  its  treasure  in  order  to  satisfy  his  insatiable  ambition, 
when  educated  men  of  that  nation  consented  to  veil  his  acts 
of  invasion  on  the  human  will  in  plausible  phrases,  how  could 
he  fail  to  regard  the  whole  world  as  a  vast  field,  open  to  the 
first  person  who  would  undertake  to  occupy  and  till  it? 
Heroic  greatness  of  soul  alone  could  have  discerned  that  the 
adulatory  words  and  the  blind  obedience  of  the  citizens  who 
were  isolated  by  the  tyranny  of  his  institutions,  and  then 
decimated  at  his  command,  were  dictated  by  constraint  only. 

And  yet,  although  Bonaparte  had  none  of  those  generous 
feelings,  reasonable  observation  might  have  shown  him  that 
the  alert  obedience  with  which  the  French  marched  to  the 
battle-field  was  but  a  misdirection  of  that  national  spirit 
which  a  great  Revolution  had  aroused  in  a  great  people. 
The  cry  of  liberty  had  awakened  generous  enthusiasm,  but 
the  confusion  that  ensued  had  rendered  men  afraid  to  com- 
plete their  work.  The  Emperor  skillfully  seized  on  this  mo- 
ment of  hesitation,  and  turned  it  to  his  own  advantage.  For 
the  last  thirty  years  the  French  character  has  been  so  de- 
veloped that  the  bulk  of  our  citizens  of  every  class  have 
been  possessed  by  the  desire  to  live,  or,  if  to  live  were  im- 
possible, by  the  desire  to  die,  for  some  particular  object. 
Bonaparte  did  not,  however,  invariably  mistake  the  bent  of 
the  genius  of  the  people  whom  he  had  undertaken  to  rule, 
but  he  felt  within  himself  the  strength  to  control  it,  and  he 
directed  it,  or  rather  misdirected  it,  to  his  own  advantage. 

It  was  becoming  hard  to  serve  him;  feelings  which 
seemed  instinctively  to  warn  us  of  what  was  to  come  were 
not  to  be  repressed.  Many  were  the  sad  reflections  of  my 


SAD  REFLECTIONS.  493 

husband  and  myself — I  remember  them  well — in  the  midst 
of  the  splendor  and  luxury  of  a  position  for  which  we  were 
no  doubt  envied.  As  I  have  said,  our  means  were  small 
when  we  joined  the  First  Consul's  Court.  His  gifts,  which 
were  sold  rather  than  freely  bestowed,  had  surrounded  us 
with  luxury  on  which  he  insisted.  I  was  still  young,  and  I 
found  myself  enabled  to  gratify  the  tastes  of  youth  and  to 
enjoy  the  pleasures  of  a  brilliant  position.  I  had  a  beautiful 
house ;  I  had  fine  diamonds ;  every  day  I  might  vary  my 
elegant  dress ;  a  chosen  circle  of  friends  dined  at  my  table ; 
every  theatre  was  open  to  me ;  there  was  no  fete  given  in 
Paris  to  which  I  was  not  invited  ;  and  yet  even  then  an  in- 
explicable cloud  hung  over  me.  Often  on  our  return  from 
a  splendid  entertainment  at  the  Tuileries,  and  while  still 
wearing  our  garb  of  state — or  shall  I  say,  of  servitude  ? — my 
husband  and  I  would  seriously  discuss  all  that  was  passing 
around  us.  A  secret  anxiety  as  to  the  future,  an  ever-grow- 
ing distrust  of  our  master,  oppressed  us  both.  Without  dis- 
tinctly knowing  what  we  dreaded,  we  were  aware  that  there 
was  something  to  dread.  "  I  am  unfitted,"  my  husband  used 
to  say,  "  for  the  narrow  and  idle  life  of  a  Court."  "  I  can 
not  admire,"  I  would  say  to  him,  "  that  which  costs  so  much 
blood  and  misery."  We  were  weary  of  military  glory,  and 
shocked  at  the  fierce  severity  it  often  inspires  in  those  who 
have  gained  it ;  and  perhaps  the  repugnance  we  felt  for  it 
was  a  presentiment  of  the  price  which  Bonaparte  was  to 
make  France  pay  for  the  greatness  that  he  forced  upon  her. 

To  these  painful  feelings  was  added  the  fear  of  being 
unable  to  feel  any  affection  for  him  whom  we  must  still  con- 
tinue to  serve.  This  was  one  of  my  secret  troubles.  I  clung 
with  the  enthusiasm  of  youth  and  imagination  to  the  admi- 
ration for  the  Emperor  that  I  desired  to  retain ;  I  sincerely 
tried  to  deceive  myself  with  regard  to  him ;  I  eagerly  re- 
called cases  when  he  had  acted  up  to  my  hopes.  The  strug- 
gle was  painful  and  vain,  but  I  suffered  more  after  I  had 
relinquished  it.  In  1814  numbers  of  people  wondered  at  my 


494:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

ardent  desire  for  the  fall  of  the  founder  of  our  fortune,  and 
for  the  return  of  those  who  would  ruin  it ;  they  accused  us 
of  ingratitude  in  so  promptly  forsaking  the  cause  of  the  Em- 
peror, and  honored  us  with  their  surprise  because  of  the  pa- 
tience with  which  we  endured  our  heavy  loss.  They  were 
unable  to  read  our  hearts ;  they  were  ignorant  of  the  impres- 
sions that  had  been  made  on  us  long  before.  The  return  of 
the  King  ruined  us,  but  it  set  our  hearts  and  minds  at  lib- 
erty. It  promised  a  future  in  which  our  child  might  freely 
yield  to  the  noble  inspirations  of  his  youth.  "  My  son,"  said 
his  father,  "  will  perhaps  be  poor,  but  he  will  not  be  shackled 
and  hampered  as  we  have  been."  It  is  not  sufficiently 
known  in  the  world — that  is,  in  the  regulated  and  factitious 
society  of  a  great  city — that  there  is  happiness  in  a  position 
which  allows  of  the  complete  development  of  one's  feelings 
and  of  freedom  in  all  one's  thoughts. 

On  the  feast  of  St.  Joseph,*  Princess  Borghese  and  Prin- 
cess Caroline  f  gave  a  little  fete  in  honor  of  the  Empress.  A 
large  party  was  invited.  A  comedy  or  vaudeville  was  acted, 
full  of  verses  in  honor  of  the  Emperor  and  in  praise  of  Jose- 
phine. The  two  Princesses  represented  shepherdesses,  and 
looked  exquisitely  lovely.  General  Junot  took  the  part  of  a 
soldier  just  returned  from  the  army,  and  in  love  with  one  of 
the  young  girls.  The  position  seemed  to  suit  them  perfectly, 
whether  on  the  stage  or  elsewhere.  But  Bonaparte's  two 
sisters,  although  Princesses,  sang  out  of  tune ;  and,  as  each 
could  detect  this  in  the  other,  she  ridiculed  her  sister's  per- 
formance. Both  my  sister  and  I  took  part  in  the  piece.  I 
was  greatly  amused  at  the  rehearsals  by  the  mutual  spiteful- 
ness  of  the  two  sisters,  who  had  little  love  for  each  other, 
and  the  vexation  of  the  author  and  the  composer.  Both 
thought  a  good  deal  of  the  production ;  they  were  annoyed 
at  hearing  their  verses  and  songs  badly  rendered ;  they  dared 
not  complain,  and,  when  they  ventured  on  timid  remon- 
strance, every  one  hastened  to  silence  them. 

*  March  19,  1807.— P.  R.  f  Mme.  Murat,  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg. 


SIEGE  OF  DANTZIC.  495 

The  play  was  ill  performed.  The  Empress  cared  little 
for  the  insincere  homage  of  her  sisters-in-law,  and  remem- 
bered that  on  this  same  stage,  a  few  years  before,  she  had 
seen  her  own  children,  young,  gay,  and  loving,  touch  even 
Bonaparte's  heart  by  offering  him  flowers.  She  told  me  that 
during  the  whole  evening  this  recollection  had  been  present 
with  her.  She  was  now  away  from  her  husband,  anxious 
about  him,  uneasy  about  herself,  far  from  her  son  and  daugh- 
ter. Ever  since  the  day  she  ascended  the  throne  she  had 
regretted  her  happier  past. 

On  the  occasion  of  her  fete-day  the  Emperor  wrote  af- 
fectionately to  her :  "  I  dislike  very  much  being  so  far  away 
from  you.  The  chill  of  the  climate  seems  to  lay  hold  of 
my  heart.  We  are  all  longing  for  Paris,  that  Paris  which 
one  regrets  in  every  place,  and  for  whose  sake  we  are  always 
in  pursuit  of  glory,  and  after  all,  Josephine,  only  that  we 
may  be  applauded  on  our  return  by  the  crowd  at  the  Opera. 
"When  spring  comes,  I  hope  to  beat  the  Russians  thoroughly, 
and  then,  mesdames,  we  will  go  home,  and  you  shall  crown 
us  with  laurel." 

During  the  winter  the  siege  of  Dantzic  was  begun.  Bo- 
naparte took  it  into  his  head  to  give  some  glory  (as  he  called 
it)  to  Savary.  The  military  reputation  of  the  latter  did  not 
stand  very  high  with  the  army ;  but  he  was  useful  to  the 
Emperor  in  other  ways,  and  covetous  of  reward.  The  Em- 
peror foresaw  that  some  day  he  would  be  obliged  to  give 
him  a  decoration,  in  order  to  be  able  to  use  him  as  occasion 
might  arise  ;  so  he  chose  to  say  that  Savary  had  obtained  an 
advantage  of  some  kind  over  the  Russians,  and  bestowed  on 
him  the  grand  cordon  of  the  Legion  of  Honor.  Military 
men  disapproved,  but  Bonaparte  cared  as  little  for  them  as 
for  others,  and  to  bestow  reward  independently  of  merit  or 
desert  was  a  favorite  exercise  of  his  independence. 

He  seldom  left  his  headquarters  at  Osterode,*  except  for 
the  purpose  of  inspecting  the  various  cantonments.  He 
*  He  resided  in  Finckestein  Castle,  near  Osterode. 

37 


496  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

issued  decrees  on  a  great  number  of  subjects.  He  wrote  * 
a  letter  to  M.  de  Champagny,  the  Minister  of  the  Interior, 
which  was  mentioned  in  the  "  Moniteur,"  ordering  him  to 
announce  to  the  Institute  that  a  statue  would  be  presented 
to  it  in  honor  of  D'Alembert,  the  French  mathematician, 
who,  more  than  any  other,  had  contributed  to  the  advance- 
ment of  scienee.f 

The  bulletins  contained  statements  of  the  position  of  the 
army  only,  and  of  the  Emperor's  health,  which  continued  to 
be  excellent.  He  often  rode  forty  leagues  in  a  day.  He 
continued  to  make  numerous  promotions  in  his  army,  which 
were  published  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  indiscriminately,  and  un- 
der the  same  date  with  the  appointment  of  certain  bishops. 

The  Empress  of  Austria's  death  occurred  at  this  time. 
She  was  only  thirty-four  years  of  age.  She  left  four  sons 
and  five  daughters.  The  Princes  of  Bavaria  and  Baden,  and 
some  others  belonging  to  the  Confederation  of  the  Khine, 
were  staying  with  the  army  and  paying  court  to  the  Em- 
peror. When  the  day's  work  was  over,  he  attended  concerts, 
given  for  him  by  Paer  the  musician,  whom  he  had  met  at 
Berlin,  and  whom  he  engaged  in  his  service  and  brought 
back  with  him  to  Paris.  M.  de  Talleyrand's  society  was  no 
doubt  a  great  resource  to  the  Emperor,  but  he  frequently  left 
him,  in  order  to  pass  some  days  in  great  state  at  "Warsaw, 
where  he  conversed  with  the  nobles,  and  kept  up  the  hopes 
which  it  was  thought  desirable  they  should  not  abandon.  It 

*  That  is,  a  letter  was  written  by  his  orders.  Bonaparte  writes  very  badly  ; 
he  never  takes  the  trouble  to  form  even  one  letter  in  a  word  correctly. 

f  This  is  the  Emperor's  letter : 

"  M.  CHAMPAGNY  :  Being  desirous  of  placing  in  the  Salle  des  Stances  of  the 
Institute  the  statue  of  D'Alembert,  as  that  of  the  French  mathematician  who, 
in  the  last  century,  contributed  most  to  the  advancement  of  this,  the  chief  of 
all  sciences,  we  request  you  to  make  our  decision  known  to  the  first  class  of  the 
Institute.  We  thus  convey  to  it  a  proof  of  our  esteem,  and  of  our  constant 
intention  to  grant  reward  and  encouragement  to  the  labors  of  that  society, 
which  is  so  important  to  the  prosperity  and  the  welfare  of  our  people. 

"Osterode,  18th  March,  1807."— P.  R. 


DEATH  OF  QUEEN  HORTENSE'S  SON.  ±97 

was  at  "Warsaw  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  negotiated  on  the  Em- 
peror's behalf  with  ambassadors  from  the  Porte  and  from 
Persia.  Bonaparte  permitted  them  to  witness  some  ma- 
noeuvres by  a  part  of  his  army.  At  Warsaw  also  a  suspen- 
sion of  arms  between  France  and  Sweden  was  signed. 

The  difficulty  about  the  Monseigneur  having  been  set- 
tled, Cardinal  Maury  was  admitted  to  the  Institute,  and  de- 
livered a  panegyric  on  the  Abbe  de  Radovilliers  as  the  usual 
reception  speech.  An  immense  crowd  was  present,  but  the 
Cardinal  disappointed  public  expectation.  His  discourse  was 
long  and  tedious,  and  it  was  justly  inferred  that  his  abilities 
were  absolutely  worn  out.  His  pastorals  and  some  Lenten 
sermons  which  he  preached  subsequently  confirm  that  im- 
pression. 

The  death  of  her  little  grandson,  Napoleon,  on  the  5th  of 
May,  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  Empress.  The  child,  after  a 
few  days'  illness,  died  of  croup.  The  despair  of  the  Queen 
of  Holland  surpassed  description.  She  clung  to  the  body  of 
her  son,  and  had  to  be  removed  by  force.  Louis  Bonaparte, 
who  was  terrified  as  well  as  grieved  at  the  state  of  his  wife, 
treated  her  with  great  tenderness,  and  their  loss  brought 
about  a  sincere,  though  only  temporary,  reconciliation  be- 
tween them.  At  intervals  the  Queen  became  completely 
delirious,  shrieking,  calling  on  her  son,  and  invoking  death ; 
and  she  was  unable  to  recognize  those  who  approached  her. 
When  reason  partly  returned,  she  remained  buried  in  pro- 
found silence,  and  was  indifferent  to  all  around.  At  times, 
however,  she  would  gently  thank  her  husband  for  his  care, 
in  a  manner  which  showed  her  deep  regret  that  such  a  mis- 
fortune had  been  needed  to  change  their  mutual  feelings. 
On  one  of  these  occasions,  Louis,  true  to  his  strange  and  jeal- 
ous temper,  while  standing  beside  his  wife's  bed,  and  prom- 
ising her  that  in  future  he  would  do  all  he  could  to  make  her 
happy,  insisted  on  her  confessing  the  faults  he  imagined  she 
had  committed.  "  Confide  your  errors  to  me,"  he  said ;  "  I 
will  forgive  them  all.  We  are  about  to  begin  a  new  life 


498  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

which  will  for  ever  efface  the  past."  With  all  the  solemnity 
of  grief,  and  in  the  hope  of  death,  the  Queen  assured  him 
that,  ready  as  she  was  to  appear  before  the  throne  of  God, 
she  had  not  even  the  semblance  of  a  guilty  thought  of  which 
to  accuse  herself.  The  King,  still  unconvinced,  asked  her  to 
swear  this ;  but,  even  after  she  had  taken  an  oath  of  her  truth, 
he  could  not  believe  her,  but  recommenced  his  importunities, 
until  his  wife,  exhausted  by  her  grief,  by  the  answers  she 
had  made,  and  by  this  dreadful  persecution,  felt  herself  about 
to  faint,  and  said  :  "  Leave  me  in  peace ;  I  shall  not  escape 
from  you.  We  will  resume  the  subject  to-morrow."  And 
with  these  words  she  again  lost  consciousness.* 

When  the  young  Prince's  death  was  made  known  in 
Paris,  a  courier  was  dispatched  to  the  Emperor,  Mme.  Murat 
started  for  the  Hague,  and  a  few  days  later  the  Empress  went 
to  Brussels,  whither  Louis  himself  brought  his  wife  and  their 
surviving  little  son,  in  order  to  place  them  under  the  care  of 
the  Empress.  He  seemed  to  be  in  great  grief,  and  to  be 
very  anxious  about  Queen  Hortense,  who  remained  in  a  state 
approaching  delirium.  It  was  settled  that,  after  a  few  days' 
repose  at  Malmaison,  she  was  to  pass  several  months  in  the 
Pyrenees,  where  her  husband  would  subsequently  join  her. 
After  staying  one  day  at  the  palace  of  Lacken,  near  Brussels, 
the  King  returned  to  Holland,  and  the  Empress,  her  daugh- 
ter, the  latter's  second  son,  thenceforth  of  necessity  called 
Napoleon,  and  the  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg,  who  was  ill  cal- 
culated to  console  two  persons  whom  she  so  greatly  disliked, 
came  back  to  Paris.  M.  de  Remusat,  who  was  in  attendance 
on  the  Empress  on  this  melancholy  journey,  told  me  on  his 
return  of  the  attention  with  which  Louis  had  treated  his 
wife,  and  that  he  had  observed  that  Mme.  Murat  was  dis- 
pleased by  it. 

Mme.  Louis  Bonaparte  remained  at  Malmaison  for  a  fort- 
night in  profound  retirement  and  deep  dejection.  Toward 
the  end  of  May  she  left  for  Cauterets.  She  was  indifferent 
*  It  is  from  the  Queen  herself  that  I  heard  these  facts. 


QUEEN  HORTENSE'S  DESPAIR.  499 

to  all  things,  tearless,  sleepless,  speechless.  She  would  press 
the  hand  of  any  one  who  spoke  to  her,  and  every  day,  at 
the  hour  of  her  son's  death,  she  had  a  violent  hysterical 
attack.  I  never  beheld  grief  so  painful  to  witness.  She 
was  pale,  motionless,  her  eyes  rigidly  fixed  —  one  could 
not  but  weep  on  approaching  her;  then  she  would  utter 
these  few  words :  "  Why  do  you  weep  ?  He  is  dead — I 
know  it  well ;  but  I  do  not  suffer.  I  assure  you  I  feel  no- 
thing." * 

During  her  journey  to  the  south,  a  tremendous  storm 
roused  her  from  this  state  of  lethargy.  There  had  been  a 
storm  on  the  day  that  her  son  died.  When  the  thunder 
roared  this  time,  she  listened  to  it  attentively ;  as  it  increased 
in  violence,  she  was  seized  with  a  terrible  nervous  attack, 

*  This  description  of  Hortense's  despair  is  by  no  means  exaggerated.  My 
grandfather  writes  as  follows  to  his  wife,  from  Brussels,  whither  he  had  accom- 
panied the  Empress:  "May  16,  1807.  The  King  and  Queen  arrived  here  yes- 
terday. The  interview  with  the  Empress  was  painful  to  her  only,  and  how  could 
it  be  otherwise  ?  Picture  to  yourself  that  the  Queen,  whose  health  in  other  re- 
spects is  fairly  good,  is  exactly  in  the  state  in  which  Nina  is  represented  on  the 
stage.  She  has  but  one  idea — that  of  her  loss ;  she  speaks  but  on  one  subject 
— it  is  of  him.  Not  a  single  tear,  calm  and  cold,  her  eyes  almost  fixed,  an 
almost  absolute  silence,  which  she  only  breaks  to  rend  the  heart  of  her  hearers, 
If  she  meets  any  one  whom  she  had  formerly  seen  with  her  son,  she  looks  at 
him  with  kindness  and  interest,  and  says  in  a  very  low  voice,  '  You  know  he  is 
dead.'  When  she  saw  her  mother,  she  said  to  her:  *  He  was  here  with  me  not 
long  ago;  I  held  him  on  my  knee.'  Perceiving  me  a  few  moments  after- 
ward, she  beckoned  to  me  to  draw  near.  '  You  recollect  Mayence  ?  He  acted 
there  with  us.'  When  ten  o'clock  struck,  she  turned  to  one  of  her  ladies. 
'  You  know,'  she  said,  '  that  it  was  ten  o'clock  when  he  died.'  In  this  manner 
only  she  breaks  her  almost  continual  silence.  Withal  she  is  kind,  sensible,  and 
reasonable.  She  is  perfectly  aware  of  her  state ;  she  even  speaks  of  it.  She  is 
fortunate,  she  says,  *  in  being  unable  to  feel.  She  would  have  suffered  too  much 
otherwise.'  She  was  asked  whether  seeing  her  mother  had  not  caused  her  emo- 
tion. *  No,'  she  answered ;  *  but  I  am  very  glad  to  have  seen  her.1  On  being 
told  how  much  Josephine  was  hurt  by  the  little  feeling  she  evinced  on  seeing 
her  again, '  Oh,  she  must  not  vex  herself,'  she  answered ;  *  that  is  my  nature.'  To 
everything  addressed  to  her  on  other  subjects,  she  answers :  '  I  do  not  care ;  let 
it  be  as  you  like.'  She  imagines  she  wants  to  be  alone  with  her  grief;  she  will 
not,  however,  visit  spots  which  recall  the  memory  of  her  eon." — P.  R. 


500  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

followed  by  a  flood  of  tears ;  and  from  that  instant  she  re- 
gained the  power  of  feeling  and  of  suffering,  and  gave  her- 
self up  to  a  profound  grief  which  never  completely  subsided. 
Although  I  can  not  continue  her  history  without  anticipating 
dates,  I  will  nevertheless  conclude  this  episode  in  her  life  at 
once.  She  took  up  her  abode  among  the  mountains  with  a 
small  suite,  and  tried  to  escape  from  herself  by  continually 
walking,  so  as  to  exhaust  her  strength.  In  a  state  of  con- 
stant painful  excitement,  she  wandered  through  the  valleys 
of  the  Pyrenees,  or  climbed  the  rocks,  attempting  the  most 
difficult  ascents,  and  seemed,  I  have  been  told  by  others,  as 
if  only  bent  on  wearing  herself  out. 

At  Cauterets  she  met  by  chance  with  M.  Decazes,  who 
was  then  young,  unknown  to  fame,  and,  like  the  Queen,  in 
deep  grief.  He  had  lost  his  young  wife,*  and  was  in  bad 
health.  These  two  met  and  understood  each  other's  grief. 
It  is  extremely  probable  that  Mme.  Louis,  who  was  too  un- 
happy to  restrict  herself  to  the  conventionalities  of  her  rank, 
and  refused  to  receive  unsympathetic  persons,  was  more  ac- 
cessible to  a  man  suffering  from  a  sorrow  like  her  own.  M. 
Decazes  was  young  and  handsome ;  the  idle  sojourners  at  a 
watering-place  and  the  inconsiderate  tongue  of  scandal  pre- 
tended there  was  something  more  than  friendship  in  this. 
The  Queen  was  too  much  absorbed  in  her  sorrow  to  take 
notice  of  anything  that  was  going  on  around  her.  Her  only 
companions  were  young  friends  devoted  to  her,  anxious 
about  her  health,  and  eager  to  procure  her  the  least  allevia- 
tion. Meanwhile  letters  were  written  to  Paris  full  of  gossip 
about  the  Queen  and  M.  Decazes. 

At  the  end  of  the  summer  King  Louis  rejoined  his  wife 
in  the  south  of  France.  It  would  seem  that  tlae  sight  of  the 
sorrowing  mother  and  of  his  only  surviving  son  softened  his 
heart.  The  interview  was  affectionate  on  both  sides,  and 
the  married  pair,  who  for  long  had  lived  in  estrangement, 

*  A  daughter  of  M.  Marrois,  President  of  the  Court  of  Cassation. 


A  RECONCILIATION.  501 

were  once  more  reconciled.*  Had  Louis  returned  immedi- 
diately  to  the  Hague,  it  is  probable  that  the  reconciliation 
would  have  been  lasting ;  but  he  accompanied  his  wife  to 
Paris,  and  their  domestic  union  displeased  Mme.  Murat.  I 
was  told  by  the  Empress  that  at  first,  on  their  return  to 
Paris,  her  daughter  was  deeply  touched  by  the  grief  of  her 
husband,  and  said  that,  through  suffering,  a  new  bond  had 
been  formed  between  them,  and  that  she  felt  she  could  for- 
give the  past.  But  Mme.  Murat — or  so  the  Empress  be- 
lieved on  what  appeared  to  be  good  grounds — began  once 
more  to  disturb  her  brother's  mind.  She  related  to  him, 
without  appearing  to  believe  them  herself,  the  stories  told  of 
the  Queen's  meetings  with  M.  Decazes.  Less  than  this  would 
have  sufficed  to  rekindle  Louis's  jealousy  and  suspicion.f  I 
can  not  now  remember  whether  he  had  himself  met  M.  De- 
cazes in  the  Pyrenees,  or  whether  he  had  merely  heard  him 
spoken  of  by  his  wife ;  for,  as  she  attached  not  the  least  im- 
portance to  her  acquaintance  with  him,  she  often  said,  before 
other  persons,  how  much  she  had  been  touched  by  the  simi- 
larity of  their  sorrows,  and  how  deeply  she  felt,  in  her  own 
grief,  for  the  desolation  of  the  bereaved  husband. 

The  Empress,  who  was  alarmed  at  the  emaciated  condi- 
tion of  her  daughter,  and  who  feared  for  her  the  fatigue  of 
another  journey,  as  well  as  the  climate  of  Holland,  entreated 
the  Emperor,  who  had  then  returned  to  Paris,  to  persuade 
Louis  to  allow  his  wife  to  remain  in  Paris  for  her  confine- 
ment. The  Emperor  obtained  permission  for  her  by  com- 
manding Louis  to  grant  it.  The  latter,  who  was  angry,  em- 
bittered, and  no  doubt  ill  pleased  at  being  forced  to  return 
alone  to  the  gloomy  mists  of  his  kingdom,  and  who  was  beset 

*  Their  third  son,  afterward  Napoleon  III.,  was  born  on  the  3d  of  April, 
1808. 

f  Louis  Bonaparte  himself  procured  for  M.  Decazes  an  unimportant  post  in 
the  household  of  Mme.  Bonaparte,  his  mother.  He  never  appeared  at  Court 
nor  in  society.  Who  would  have  believed  then  that,  a  few  years  later,  he  would 
be  a  peer  of  France  and  the  favorite  of  Louis  XVIII.  ? 


502  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

by  his  own  bad  temper,  resumed  his  suspicions  and  his  ill 
humor,  and  once  more  vented  both  on  his  wife.  At  first  she 
could  hardly  believe  him  to  be  in  earnest ;  but,  when  she 
found  herself  again  insulted,  when  she  began  to  understand 
that  even  in  her  sorrow  she  was  not  respected,  and  that  she 
had  been  thought  capable  of  an  intrigue  at  a  time  when  she 
had  been  only  longing  for  death,  she  fell  into  a  state  of  utter 
dejection.  Indifferent  to  the  present,  to  the  future,  to  every 
tie,  she  felt  contempt  for  her  husband,  which  perhaps  she 
allowed  to  be  too  plainly  perceptible,  and  she  thought  only 
of  how  she  might  contrive  to  live  apart  from  him.  All  this 
took  place  in  the  autumn  of  1807,  "When  I  shall  have 
reached  that  date,  I  may  have  more  to  say  about  this  un- 
happy woman. 

The  Empress  shed  many  tears  over  the  death  of  her 
grandson.  Besides  the  ardent  affection  she  had  cherished 
for  this  child,  who  was  of  a  lovable  disposition,  her  own  posi- 
tion was,  she  felt,  endangered  by  his  death.  She  had  hoped 
that  Louis's  children  would  make  up  to  the  Emperor  for  her 
lack  of  offspring,  and  the  terrible  divorce,  which  cost  her  so 
often  such  agonizing  dread,  seemed  after  this  sad  loss  once 
more  to  threaten  her.  She  spoke  to  me  at  the  time  of  her 
secret  fears,  and  I  had  much  difficulty  in  soothing  her. 

Even  at  the  present  day  the  impression  produced  by  M. 
de  Fontanes's  fine  speech  on  this  misfortune,  into  which  he 
contrived  to  introduce  a  remarkable  description  of  Bona- 
parte's prosperity,  is  not  yet  forgotten.  The  Emperor  had 
ordered  that  the  colors  taken  from  the  enemy  in  this  last 
campaign  and  the  sword  of  Frederick  the  Great  should  be 
borne  in  state  to  the  Invalides.  A  Te  Deum  was  to  be  sung, 
and  an  oration  delivered  in  the  presence  of  the  great  digni- 
taries, the  Ministers,  the  Senate,  and  the  pensioners  them- 
selves. The  ceremony,  which  took  place  on  the  lYth  of 
May,  180Y,  was  very  imposing,  and  the  speech  of  M.  de  Fon- 
tanes  will  perpetuate  for  us  the  remembrance  of  those  sacred 
spoils,  which  have  since  been  restored  to  their  former  owners. 


FAMILY  LIFE  OF  KING   OF  HOLLAND.  503 

The  orator  was  admired  for  aggrandizing  his  hero,  and  yet 
for  refraining  from  insult  to  the  vanquished,  and  for  reserv- 
ing his  praise  for  what  was  really  heroic.  It  was  added  that, 
strictly  speaking,  his  praise  might  be  taken  for  advice  ;  and 
such  was  the  state  of  submission  and  fear  in  those  days 
that  M.  de  Fontanes  was  held  to  have  displayed  remarkable 
courage. 

In  his  peroration  he  described  his  hero  surrounded  with 
the  pomp  of  victory,  but  turning  from  it  to  weep  over  a 
child.*  But  the  hero  did  not  weep.  He  was  at  first  pain- 

*  This  incident  is  alluded  to  in  the  Introduction  to  this  work,  when  the  Court 
of  Napoleon  is  mentioned.  I  have  allowed  the  repetition  to  stand,  as  the  fur- 
ther details  given  here  are  interesting.  I  add  to  these,  in  order  better  to  depict 
the  family  life  of  the  King  and  Queen  of  Holland,  the  following  letter,  written 
to  the  King  by  his  brother,  and  dated  Finckestein,  April  4, 1807,  about  a  month 
before  the  child's  death :  "  Your  quarrels  with  the  Queen  are  becoming  public 
property.  Do  show  in  your  own  home  the  paternal  and  effeminate  character 
that  you  show  in  your  government,  and  evince  in  matters  of  business  the  severity 
you  display  at  home.  You  manage  your  young  wife  as  you  would  a  regiment. 
.  .  .  You  have  the  best  and  most  virtuous  of  wives,  and  you  make  her  wretched. 
Let  her  dance  as  much  as  she  likes ;  it  is  natural  at  her  age.  My  wife  is  forty, 
but  from  the  battle-field  I  write,  telling  her  to  go  to  balls.  And  you  want  a  girl 
of  twenty,  who  sees  her  life  passing  away,  who  retains  all  its  illusions,  to  live 
like  a  nun,  or  like  a  nurse,  always  washing  her  baby !  You  interfere  too  much 
in  your  home,  and  not  enough  in  your  government.  I  would  not  tell  you  all  this, 
only  for  the  interest  I  bear  you.  Make  the  mother  of  your  children  happy ; 
there  is  but  one  way — it  is  to  show  her  great  esteem  and  confidence.  Unfortu- 
nately your  wife  is  too  good ;  were  you  married  to  a  coquette,  she  would  lead 
you  by  the  nose.  But  your  wife  is  proud,  and  she  is  shocked  and  grieved  at  the 
mere  idea  that  you  can  think  ill  of  her.  You  should  have  had  a  wife  like  some 
I  know  of  in  Paris.  She  would  have  played  you  tricks,  and  would  have  tied  you 
to  her  apron-string.  It  is  not  my  fault ;  I  have  often  told  your  wife  so."  In 
this  sensible  letter,  full  of  the  sagacity  and  vulgarity  with  which  Napoleon 
looked  at  the  ordinary  events  of  life,  the  identity  of  his  opinions  with  those  of 
the  author  of  these  Memoirs,  as  to  the  cause  and  character  of  the  conjugal  dis- 
cord of  which  they  are  treating,  is  remarkable.  King  Louis  is  too  stiff,  too 
austere,  too  jealous.  His  wife  has  tastes  natural  to  youth  and  to  imagination. 
Her  husband  misjudges,  humbles,  depresses,  and  offends  her.  Then  comes  the 
death  of  the  young  Prince,  and  this  affliction,  equally  felt  by  both  parents,  draws 
them  together  in  a  common  sorrow,  lasting  on  the  part  of  the  Queen,  and  for  a 
time  her  one  only  thought,  and  not  hers  only,  but  her  mother's  as  well.  In 
Napoleon's  published  letters  he  appears  to  be  grieved  at  first,  but  afterward 


504:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

fully  affected  by  the  boy's  death,  then  shook  off  the  feeling 
as  soon  as  possible.  M.  de  Talleyrand  told  me  afterward 
that  the  very  next  day  after  hearing  the  news  the  Emperor 
was  conversing  freely  and  just  as  usual  with  those  around 
him,  and  that  when  he  was  about  to  grant  an  audience  to 
some  of  the  great  nobles  from  the  Court  of  Warsaw,  who 
came  to  offer  their  condolence,  he  (M.  de  Talleyrand)  thought 
himself  obliged  to  remind  him  to  assume  a  serious  expression, 
and  ventured  to  offer  a  remark  on  his  apparent  indifference, 
to  which  the  Emperor  replied  that  "  he  had  no  time  to  amuse 
himself  with  feelings  and  regrets  like  other  men." 

weary  of  their  continual  sadness.  There  is  a  curious  mixture  of  kindness  and 
imperious  egotism  in  his  manner  of  comforting  them,  or  of  commanding  them 
to  be  comforted.  I  have  quoted  some  of  these  letters.  Here  is  another,  dated 
Friedland,  June  16,  1807 :  "  My  daughter,  I  have  received  your  letter  dated  from 
Orleans.  I  am  grieved  at  your  sorrow,  but  I  should  like  you  to  be  more  coura- 
geous. To  live  is  to  suffer,  and  a  brave  man  always  struggles  to  be  master  of 
himself.  I  don't  like  to  see  you  unjust  toward  little  Napoleon  Louis  and  toward 
all  your  friends.  Your  mother  and  I  thought  we  were  dearer  to  you  than  it 
seems  we  are.  I  won  a  great  victory  on  the  14th  of  June.  I  am  in  good  health, 
and  send  you  my  love."  It  will  be  seen  how  greatly  the  Emperor  and  Josephine's 
Lady-in-Waiting  differ  in  their  estimate  of  Queen  Hortense  from  the  general 
opinion  of  her  character,  which  yet  does  not  appear  to  have  been  altogether  un- 
founded. It  is  probable  that  both  were  swayed  by  their  unfavorable  opinion  of 
the  Emperor's  brothers.  This  was  certainly  deserved,  especially  by  Louis,  who 
had  no  redeeming  quality  to  atone  for  his  defects. — P.  R. 


CHAPTER  XXIY. 

(1807.) 

The  Duke  of  Dantzic— Fouche"'s  Police— Battle  of  Friedland— M.  de  Lameth— 
Treaty  of  Tilsit— Eeturn  of  the  Emperor— M.  de  Talleyrand— The  Ministers— 
The  Bishops. 

MEANWHILE  the  severity  of  winter  gradually  lessened  in 
Poland,  and  everything  indicated  a  renewal  of  hostilities. 
The  bulletin  of  the  16th  of  May  informed  us  that  the  Em- 
peror of  Russia  had  rejoined  his  army ;  and  the  temperate 
language  in  which  the  sovereigns  were  spoken  of,  together 
with  the  epithet  of  "  brave  soldiers  "  applied  to  the  Rus- 
sians, made  us  understand  that  a  vigorous  resistance  was  ex- 
pected. The  siege  of  Dantzic  was  intrusted  to  Marshal  Le- 
febvre ;  some  skirmishing  took  place,  and  finally,  on  the  24th 
of  May,  Dantzic  capitulated.  The  Emperor  immediately  re- 
moved thither.  To  reward  the  Marshal,  he  made  him  Duke 
of  Dantzic,  and,  together  with  the  title,  granted  him  a  con- 
siderable sum  of  money.  This  was  the  first  creation  of  the 
kind.  He  pointed  out  its  advantages,  in  his  own  way,  in  a 
letter  which  he  wrote  to  the  Senate  on  the  occasion  ;  and  he 
endeavored  to  lay  particular  stress  on  those  reasons  for  this 
step  which  would  be  least  unwelcome  to  lovers  of  equality, 
whose  opinions  he  was  always  careful  to  respect.  I  have 
often  heard  him  speak  of  the  motives  which  led  him  to  create 
an  intermediate  caste,  as  he  called  it,  between  himself  and 
the  vast  democracy  of  France.  His  reasons  were,  the  neces- 
sity of  rewarding  important  services  in  a  way  not  onerous  to 


506  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

the  state,  and  of  contenting  French  vanity,*  and  also  that  he 
might  have  a  court  about  him,  like  the  other  sovereigns  of 
Europe.  "  Liberty,"  he  used  to  say,  "  is  needed  by  a  small 
and  privileged  class,  who  are  gifted  by  nature  with  abilities 
greater  than  those  of  the  bulk  of  mankind.  It  can  therefore 
be  restricted  with  impunity.  Equality,  on  the  other  hand, 
delights  the  multitude.  I  do  not  hurt  that  principle  by  giv- 
ing titles  to  certain  men,  without  respect  of  birth,  which  is 
now  an  exploded  notion.  I  act  monarchically  in  creating 
hereditary  rank,  but  I  remain  within  the  principles  of  the 
Revolution,  because  my  nobility  is  not  exclusive.  The  titles 
I  bestow  are  a  kind  of  civic  crown ;  they  may  be  won  by 
good  actions.  Besides,  it  is  a  sign  of  ability  when  rulers 
communicate  to  those  they  govern  the  same  impulses  they 
have  themselves.  Now,  'I  move  by  ascending,  and  the  na- 
tion must  rise  in  the  same  way." 

On  one  occasion,  after  laying  down  this  system  in  his 
wife's  presence  and  mine,  he  suddenly  paused — he  had  been 
walking  up  and  down  the  room,  as  was  his  habit — and  said : 
"  It  is  not  that  I  do  not  perceive  that  all  these  nobles  whom 
I  create,  and  especially  the  dukes  whom  I  endow  with  enor- 
mous sums  of  money,  will  become  partially  independent  of 
me.  Their  honors  and  riches  will  tempt  them  to  get  loose, 
and  they  will  acquire  probably  what  they  will  call  the  spirit 
of  their  class"  On  this  he  resumed  his  walk  and  was  silent 
for  a  few  minutes  ;  then,  turning  to  us  abruptly,  he  added, 
with  a  smile  of  which  I  can  not  attempt  to  analyze  the  ex- 
pression, "  Ah,  but  they  won't  run  so  fast  but  that  I  shall  be 
able  to  catch  them  ! " 

Although  Lefebvre's  military  services  were  a  sufficient 
reason  for  the  gifts  which  the  Emperor  assigned  to  him  from 
the  battle-field,  yet  the  mocking  humor  of  the  Parisians,  un- 

*  "  You  will  say,  perhaps,"  said  the  Emperor,  "  that  I  shall  be  creating  a 
court  nobility,  but  these  nobles  will  have  won  their  rank  by  their  swords." 
"  By  their  swords  ?  "  said  my  grandmother ;  "  you  mean  their  bayonets."  The 
Empress  laughed. — P.  K. 


FOUCHE'S  POLICE.  507 

affected  by  even  justly  won  glory,  exercised  itself  upon  the 
dignity  of  the  new  Duke.  There  was  something  of  the  bar- 
rack-room about  him  which  partly  encouraged  this,  and  his 
wife,  who  was  old  and  excessively  homely  in  her  manners, 
became  the  object  of  general  ridicule.  She  openly  expressed 
her  preference  for  the  pecuniary  part  of  the  Emperor's  gifts, 
and  when  she  made  this  admission  in  the  drawing-room  at 
Saint  Cloud,  and  the  simplicity  of  the  speech  made  some  of 
us  laugh,  she  reddened  with  anger  and  said  to  the  Empress, 
"  Madame,  I  beg  you  to  make  your  young  hussies  hold  their 
tongues."  It  may  be  imagined  that  such  a  sally  did  not 
lessen  our  mirth.* 

The  Emperor  would  willingly  have  put  a  stop  to  jesting 
on  these  points,  but  that  was  beyond  his  power ;  and,  as  it 
was  known  that  he  was  sensitive  on  the  subject,  this  was  a 
favorite  way  of  retaliating  upon  him  for  his  tyranny. 

Witty  sayings  and  calembourgs  were  current  in  Paris,  and 
written  off  to  the  army.  The  Emperor,  in  his  vexation, 
rebuked  the  Minister  of  Police  for  his  carelessness.  The 
latter,  affecting  a  certain  disdainful  liberality,  replied  that  he 
thought  he  might  as  well  leave  idle  people  amusement  of 
this  kind.  However,  on  learning  that  contemptuous  or  ill- 
natured  remarks  had  been  made  in  any  Paris  drawing-room, 
the  Minister  would  send  for  the  master  or  mistress  of  the 
house,  advise  them  to  keep  a  better  watch  over  their  guests, 
and  dismiss  them  full  of  an  undefined  suspicion  of  their 
social  circle. 

Afterward  the  Emperor  contrived  to  reconcile  the  old  to 
the  new  nobility,  by  offering  the  former  a  share  in  his  gifts  ; 

*  Certain  sayings  of  the  Marshal  Duke  of  Dantzic  have  a  soldier-like  ring. 
He  was  lamenting  to  my  grandfather  the  misconduct  of  a  son.  "  You  see,"  he 
said,  "  I  am  afraid  he  may  not  die  well."  Once,  when  he  was  vexed  by  the  tone 
of  envy  and  unkindness  with  which  a  companion  of  his  childhood,  on  meeting 
him  again  in  his  prosperity,  spoke  of  his  riches,  titles,  and  luxury,  he  answered 
him :  "  Well,  now,  you  shall  have  it  all,  but  at  cost  price.  We  will  go  down 
into  the  garden ;  I  will  fire  at  you  sixty  times,  and  then,  if  you  are  not  killed, 
everything  shall  be  yours." — P.  R. 


508  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

and  they,  feeling  that  every  concession,  however  small  in 
itself,  was  a  recognition  of  their  privileges,  did  not  disdain 
favors  which  replaced  them  in  their  former  position. 

Meanwhile,  the  army  was  strongly  reenforced.  All  our 
allies  contributed  to  it.  Spaniards  hurried  across  France  in 
order  to  fight  against  Eussians  on  the  Vistula ;  not  a  sover- 
eign ventured  to  disobey  the  orders  he  received.  The  bul- 
letin of  the  12th  of  June  announced  that  hostilities  had  re- 
commenced ;  it  also  contained  an  account  of  the  efforts  that 
had  been  made  to  bring  about  a  peace.  M.  de  Talleyrand 
anxiously  desired  this ;  perhaps  the  Emperor  himself  was  not 
averse  to  it :  but  the  English  Government  refused  to  con- 
sent ;  the  young  Czar  flattered  himself  that  Austerlitz  would 
be  forgotten ;  Prussia  was  weary  of  us  and  wishing  for  the 
return  of  her  King ;  Bonaparte,  as  conqueror,  imposed  severe 
conditions,  and  war  broke  out  again.  Some  partial  engage- 
ments were  to  our  advantage,  and  our  usual  activity  was  re- 
sumed. The  two  armies  met  at  Friedland,  and  we  gained 
another  great  and  hardly  contested  victory.  Yet,  notwith- 
standing our  success,  the  Emperor  felt  assured  that,  when- 
ever he  should  be  pitted  against  the  Russians,  he  must  be 
prepared  for  a  severe  struggle,  and  that  on  himself  and 
Alexander  depended  the  fate  of  the  Continent. 

A  considerable  number  of  our  general  officers  were 
wounded  at  Friedland.  M.  de  Nansouty,  my  brother-in-law, 
behaved  most  gallantly :  in  order  to  support  the  movements 
of  the  army,  he  endured  the  enemy's  fire  for  several  hours  at 
the  head  of  his  division  of  heavy  cavalry,  maintaining  his 
men,  by  his  own  example,  in  a  state  of  very  trying  inaction, 
which  may  be  said  to  have  been  as  sanguinary  as  the  thick  of 
the  fight.  Prince  Borghese  was  sent  from  the  battle-field  to 
Saint  Cloud  to  convey  the  news  of  victory  to  the  Empress ; 
he  held  out  at  the  same  time  the  hope  of  an  early  peace,  and 
the  rumor,  which  was  soon  spread,  was  no  little  enhancement 
of  the  victory. 

The  battle  of  Friedland  was  followed  by  a  rapid  march 


M.  DE  LAMETH.  509 

of  our  troops.  The  Emperor  reached  the  village  of  Tilsit, 
on  the  banks  of  the  "Niemen.  The  river  separated  the  two 
armies.  An  armistice  was  proposed  by  the  Kussian  com- 
mander and  accepted  by  us ;  negotiations  were  begun. 

While  these  events  were  taking  place,  I  had  gone  to  Aix- 
la-Chapelle,  where  I  was  leading  a  quiet  life,  and  waiting, 
like  the  rest  of  Europe,  for  the  end  of  this  terrible  war.  I 
met  there  M.  Alexandre  de  Lameth,  who  was  Prefect  of  the 
department.  After  taking  a  conspicuous  part  at  the  begin- 
ning of  the  Revolution,  he  had  emigrated,  and,  after  long 
years  in  an  Austrian  prison,  had  eventually  returned  to 
France  at  the  same  time  as  M.  de  la  Fayette.  Entering  the 
Emperor's  service,  he  attained  the  post  of  Prefect  of  the 
department  of  the  Roer,  as  it  was  called,  and  managed  it 
extremely  well.  The  education  I  had  received,  the  opinions 
I  had  heard  expressed  by  my  mother  and  her  friends,  had 
prejudiced  me  strongly  against  all  who  had  aided  the  Revo- 
lution in  1789.  I  looted  upon  M.  de  Lameth  as  simply  fac- 
tious and  ungrateful  toward  the  Court,  and  as  having  thrown 
himself  into  opposition  as  a  means  of  obtaining  a  celebrity 
flattering  to  his  ambition.  I  was  still  more  inclined  to  hold 
this  opinion,  because  I  found  that  he  was  a  great  admirer  of 
Bonaparte,  who  certainly  did  not  govern  France  on  a  system 
which  emanated  from  the  Constituent  Assembly.  But  it 
may  be  that,  like  the  majority  of  Frenchmen,  our  anarchy 
had  sickened  him  of  liberty  so  dearly  bought,  and  that  he 
sincerely  welcomed  a  despotism  which  restored  order  to  the 
country. 

My  acquaintance  with  him  gave  me  the  opportunity  of 
hearing  him  discourse  upon  the  rights  of  citizens,  the  balance 
of  power,  and  liberty  in  a  restricted  sense.  M.  de  Lameth 
defended  the  intentions  of  the  Constituent  Assembly,  and  I 
had  no  inclination  to  dispute  the  point  with  him ;  it  seemed 
of  little  importance  at  the  date  we  had  then  reached.  He 
attempted  to  justify  the  conduct  of  the  deputies  in  1789 ; 
and,  though  I  was  unequal  to  arguing  with  him,  I  felt  con- 


510  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

fusedly  that  he  was  wrong,  and  that  the  Constituent  Assem- 
bly had  not  fulfilled  its  mission  with  due  impartiality  and 
conscientiousness.  But  I  was  struck  with  the  utility  to  a  na- 
tion of  less  ephemeral  institutions,  and  the  ardent  words  to 
which  I  listened,  together  with  the  depression  produced  in 
me  by  our  endless  wars,  sowed  in  my  mind  the  seeds  of 
wholesome  and  generous  thought,  which  subsequent  events 
have  developed  in  full.  But,  whatever  our  ideas  may  have 
been  at  that  time,  our  reason  or  our  instinct  was  forced  to 
bend  before  the  triumphant  fortune  which  was  then  raising 
Napoleon  to  the  zenith  of  his  fame.  He  could  no  longer  be 
judged  by  ordinary  rule ;  fortune  was  so  constantly  at  his 
side  that,  in  rushing  onward  to  the  most  brilliant  as  well  as 
the  most  deplorable  excesses,  he  seemed  to  be  obeying  des- 
tiny.* 

*  It  appears  probable,  and  is  indeed  made  manifest  in  these  pages,  that  M. 
de  Lameth's  conversation  contributed  to  the  political  and  liberal  education  of 
their  author.  It  will  perhaps  be  found  amusing  to  contrast  the  influence  these 
conversations  had  over  her  with  her  prejudices  against  him,  and  her  somewhat 
severe  judgments  when  they  first  met.  It  must  not  be  forgotten  that  my  grand- 
mother  was  only  twenty-six  when  she  met  M.  de  Lameth  at  Aix-la-Chapelle,  and 
that  she  had  left  her  mother's  quiet,  simple,  and  saddened  home  for  the  Court 
of  the  First  Consul.  It  is  not  surprising  that  it  took  some  years  to  form  her 
judgment,  and  that  she  did  not  all  at  once  attain  to  constitutional  truth.  The 
gradual  progress  of  this  remarkable  mind  is  precisely  one  of  the  charms  of  her 
letters  and  of  these  Memoirs.  She  writes  to  her  husband  from  Aix-la-Chapelle, 
on  the  4th  of  July,  1807,  in  the  following  terms :  "  The  Prefect  is  very  nice,  but 
he  is  no  longer  the  elegant  and  distinguished  man  you  describe  to  me.  He  does 
not  look  young,  has  an  eruption  on  his  face,  can  only  talk  about  his  department, 
and  is  always  at  work  at  it.  He  does  not  know  a  word  of  anything  out  of  Aix- 
la-Chapelle,  never  opens  a  book,  and  only  attends  to  business.  He  seems  pop- 
ular here,  and  lives  with  great  simplicity."  A  few  days  later,  on  the  17th  of 
July,  she  writes :  "  I  could  like  the  Prefect  well  enough ;  his  manners  are  fine, 
but  he  is  too  much  of  a  Prefect ;  he  talks  of  nothing  but  his  department,  and 
seems  to  think  of  nothing  but  his  administration.  You  see  that  he  is  not  the 
Lameth  of  former  times,  except  in  certain  constituent  opinions  which  he  likes 
to  put  forward.  But  it  is  remarkable  that  he  always  leads  the  conversation  to 
the  scenes  of  the  past,  and  takes  pleasure  in  recalling  his  connection  with  the 
former  Court,  and  the  favor  in  which  he  was  held.  When  he  talks  in  this  way, 
one  can  but  look  at  him  and  say  nothing ;  he  does  not,  however,  seem  to  take 
one's  silence  at  all  amiss.  I  think  the  Prefect  more  agreeable  now ;  he  comes 


LETTER   TO   THE  BISHOPS.  511 

In  the  mean  time  the  important  political  circumstances 
gave  rise,  at  Aix-la-Chapelle  as  well  as  in  Paris,  to  rumors 
of  every  kind.  The  kingdom  of  Poland  was  to  be  founded, 
and  given  to  Jerome  Bonaparte,  who  was  to  marry  a  daugh- 
ter of  the  Emperor  of  Austria,  and  our  Emperor  was  to 
carry  out  the  old  project  of  the  divorce.  The  public  mind 
was  excited  by  the  gigantic  proportions  of  actual  events,  and 
became  more  and  more  possessed  by  that  longing  for  the 
extraordinary  which  the  Emperor  so  ably  turned  to  advan- 
tage. And,  indeed,  why  should  not  the  country,  seeing  what 
was  happening,  expect  that  anything  might  happen  ?  Mme. 
d'Houdetot,  who  was  then  living,  said  of  Bonaparte,  "  He 
diminishes  history  and  enlarges  imagination."  * 

After  the  battle  of  Friedland  the  Emperor  wrote  a  really 
fine  letter  to  the  bishops.  The  following  phrase  occurs  in  it : 
"  This  victory  has  commemorated  the  anniversary  of  the  bat- 
tle of  Marengo — of  that  day  when,  still  covered  with  the  dust 
of  the  battle-field,  our  first  thought,  our  first  care,  were  for 
the  reestablishment  of  order  and  peace  in  the  Church  of 

to  see  me  sometimes  in  the  morning,  and  after  a  few  minutes  he  contrives  to 
turn  the  conversation  on  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution,  on  the  Constituent 
Assembly,  and  its  ideas  of  regeneration  and  hopes  of  reform.  He  puts  all  this 
after  his  own  fashion,  and  tells  stories  which  I  affect  to  believe,  and  which  I  do 
not  in  reality  altogether  reject,  because  I  partake  of  the  disposition,  natural  in 
this  age,  to  excuse  a  good  many  of  the  political  errors  of  the  past.  Yesterday 
I  made  him  tell  me  the  whole  story  of  his  captivity,  and,  although  I  think  the 
King  of  Prussia  did  right  in  arresting  this  trio,  I  also  think  that  they  were  hard- 
ly treated.  I  must  say  I  pitied  them,  especially  poor  Mme.  Lameth,  their  mother, 
who  in  the  later  da'ys  shared  her  son's  prison,  and  had  to  climb  six  hundred  steps 
to  the  cell.  He  tells  the  story  very  well.  I  was  particularly  struck  by  the  obli- 
gation which  he  imposed  upon  himself  to  dance  by  way  of  taking  exercise.  For 
thirty-nine  months,  every  day  at  the  same  hour,  he  danced  to  his  own  singing ; 
and  he  confessed  to  me  that  he  often  found  tears  running  down  his  cheeks  dur- 
ing the  melancholy  performance.  It  was  on  concluding  this  solitary  dance  one 
day  that  he  determined  to  cut  his  throat  with  a  razor,  and  was  prevented  by  a 
servant."— P.  R. 

*  At  this  period  M.  de  Chateaubriand  had  returned  from  the  journey  to  the 
Holy  Land,  which  he  had  undertaken  in  order  to  make  studies  for  the  work 
("  Les  Martyrs  ")  which  he  was  then  contemplating. 
38 


512  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

France."     In  Paris  the  Te  Deum  was  sung  and  the  city  was 
illuminated. 

On  the  25th  of  June  the  two  Emperors,  having  embarked 
one  on  each  bank  of  the  Niemen,  in  presence  of  a  portion  of 
the  two  armies,  set  foot  at  the  same  moment  in  the  pavil- 
ion that  had  been  erected  for  them  on  a  raft  in  the  middle 
of  the  river.  They  embraced  on  meeting,  and  remained  to- 
gether for  two  hours.  The  Emperor  Napoleon  was  accom- 
panied by  Dumas,  his  Grand  Marshal,  and  Caulaincourt,  his 
Grand  Equerry ;  the  Czar,  by  his  brother  Constantine  and 
two  great  personages  of  his  Court.  In  that  interview  the 
peace  was  definitely  settled.  Bonaparte  consented  to  restore 
a  portion  of  his  states  to  the  King  of  Prussia,  although 
his  own  inclination  was  toward  a  complete  change  of  the 
form  of  the  conquered  countries,  because  an  entire  trans- 
formation would  better  suit  his  policy,  which  had  universal 
dominion  for  its  basis.  He  was,  however,  obliged  to  sacrifice 
some  part  of  his  projects  during  this  final  treaty.  The  Czar 
might  still  be  a  formidable  enemy,  and  Napoleon  knew  that 
France  was  growing  weary  of  the  war  and  demanded  his 
presence.  A  longer  campaign  would  have  led  the  army  into 
enterprises  of  which  none  could  foresee  the  issue.  It  was, 
therefore,  necessary  to  postpone  a  portion  of  the  great  plan, 
and  once  more  to  call  a  halt.  The  Poles,  who  had  reckoned 
upon  complete  liberation,  beheld  the  portion  of  Poland  that 
had  belonged  to  Prussia  turned  into  the  duchy  of  Warsaw, 
and  given  to  the  King  of  Saxony  as  in  pledge.  Dantzic  be- 
came a  free  town,  and  the  King  of  Prussia  'undertook  to 
close  his  ports  to  the  English.  The  Emperor  of  Russia 
offered  to  mediate  with  England  for  peace ;  and  Napoleon 
imagined  that  the  great  importance  of  the  mediator  would 
terminate  the  quarrel.  His  vanity  was  deeply  concerned  in 
bringing  our  insular  neighbors  to  recognize  his  royalty.* 

*  When  the  Emperor  learned,  shortly  afterward,  that  the  English  Govern- 
ment refused  to  make  peace,  he  exclaimed :  "  Very  well,  then !  The  war  shall 
recommence,  and  it  shall  be  to  the  death  for  one  of  the  two  states." 


TREATY  OF  TILSIT.  513 

He  frequently  said  afterward  that  he  felt  at  Tilsit  that  the 
question  of  continental  empire  would  one  day  be  decided 
between  the  Czar  and  himself;  and  that  the  magnanimity 
which  Alexander  displayed,*  the  young  Prince's  admira- 
tion of  him,  and  the  genuine  enthusiasm  with  which  he 
had  been  inspired  in  his  presence,  had  captivated  him, 
and  led  him  to  desire  that,  instead  of  a  total  rupture, 
a  firm  and  lasting  alliance  should  take  place,  which  might 
lead  to  the  division  of  the  continent  between  two  great 
sovereigns. 

On  the  26th  the  King  of  Prussia  joined  the  illustrious 
party  on  the  raft,  and  after  the  conference  the  three  sov- 
ereigns repaired  to  Tilsit,  where  they  remained  while  the 
negotiations  lasted,  exchanging  visits  every  day,  dining 
together,  holding  reviews,  and  appearing  to  be  on  the  best 
possible  terms.  Bonaparte  employed  all  the  resources  of 
his  mind  on  this  occasion,  and  kept  a  close  watch  over  him- 
self. He  flattered  the  young  Emperor,  and  completely  cap- 
tivated him.  M.  de  Talleyrand  completed  the  conquest  by 
the  skill  and  grace  with  which  he  sustained  and  colored  his 
master's  policy ;  so  that  Alexander  conceived  a  great  friend- 
ship for  him,  and  trusted  him  entirely.  The  Queen  of 
Prussia  came  to  Tilsit,  and  Bonaparte  did  all  he  could  to 
efface  the  impression  of  his  bulletins,  by  treating  her  with 
the  utmost  attention.f  Neither  the  Queen  nor  her  husband 
could  complain.  They,  the  two  dispossessed,  were  forced 
to  receive  what  was  restored  to  them  of  their  states  with 
gratitude.  These  illustrious  conquered  ones  concealed  their 
pain,  and  the  Emperor  believed  that  he  had  gained  them  to 
his  cause  by  reestablishing  them  in  the  parceled-out  king- 
dom from  which  he  was  unable  to  drive  them  altogether. 

*  Alexander  was  then  thirty  years  old,  yery  handsome,  and  of  fine  manners. 

f  The  Emperor  wrote  to  the  Empress:  "Tilsit,  June  8,  1807.  The  Queen 
of  Prussia  has  been  really  charming,  and  full  of  coquetry  toward  me.  But 
don't  be  jealous :  I  am  a  waxed  cloth  off  which  all  that  slides.  It  would  cost 
me  too  dear  to  play  the  gallant."— P.  R. 


514  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

He  secured  to  himself  in  his  treaty  means  of  constant  super- 
vision, by  leaving  French  garrisons  in  the  states  of  certain 
second-rate  princes ;  for  instance,  in  Saxony,  Coburg,  Olden- 
burg, and  Mecklenburg-Schwerin.  A  portion  of  his  army 
still  remained  on  the  northern  coast,  because  it  appeared  that 
the  King  of  Sweden  would  not  enter  into  the  treaty.  And, 
lastly,  this  war  gave  birth  to  a  new  kingdom,  composed  of 
Westphalia  and  a  portion  of  the  Prussian  states.  Jerome 
Bonaparte  was  adorned  with  this  new  kingship,  and  his 
marriage  with  the  Princess  Catherine  was  arranged. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  and  Prince  Kourakine  signed  this 
treaty  on  the  9th  of  July,  1807,  and  the  Emperor,  wearing 
the  decoration  of  the  Russian  Order  of  St.  Andrew,  immedi- 
ately visited  the  Czar.  He  asked  to  see  the  Russian  soldier 
who  had  conducted  himself  best  during  the  campaign,  and 
gave  him  the  cross  of  the  Legion  with  his  own  hand.  The 
two  sovereigns  embraced  anew,  and  parted,  after  having 
promised  each  other  an  eternal  friendship.  Decorations 
were  distributed  on  both  sides.  Farewells  were  exchanged 
with  great  pomp  between  Bonaparte  and  the  King  of  Prus- 
sia, and  the  Continent  was  once  more  pacified. 

It  was  impossible  to  withhold  admiration  from  glory 
such  as  this,  but  it  is  certain  that  the  country  took  much 
less  part  in  it  than  formerly.  People  began  to  perceive  that 
it  was  of  the  nature  of  a  yoke  for  us,  though  a  brilliant  one ; 
and,  as  they  were  coming  to  know  and  distrust  Bonaparte, 
they  feared  the  consequences  of  the  intoxication  which  his 
power  might  produce  in  him.  Lastly,  the  predominance  of 
the  military  element  was  exciting  uneasiness ;  the  foreseen 
vanities  of  the  sword  wounded  individual  pride.  A  secret 
trouble  mingled  with  the  general  admiration,  and  the  gloom 
which  it  produced  was  chiefly  observable  among  those  whose 
places  or  whose  rank  must  bring  them  again  into  contact 
with  Napoleon.  We  wondered  whether  the  rude  despotism 
of  his  manners  would  not  be  more  than  ever  apparent  in  all 
his  daily  actions.  We  were  still  smaller  than  before  in  his 


RETURN  OF  THE  EMPEROR.         515 

eight,  by  all  the  difference  of  his  added  greatness,  and  we 
foresaw  that  he  would  make  us  feel  this.  Each  of  us  made 
his  examination  of  conscience  with  scrupulous  care,  seeking 
to  discover  on  what  point  our  hard  master  would  manifest 
his  displeasure  on  his  return.  Wife,  family,  great  dignita- 
ries, Ministers,  the  whole  Court — in  fact,  everybody  suffered 
from  this  apprehension ;  and  the  Empress,  who  knew  him 
better  than  anybody  else,  expressed  her  uneasiness  in  the 
simplest  way,  saying,  "  The  Emperor  is  so  lucky  that  he  will 
be  sure  to  scold  a  great  deal."  The  magnanimity  of  kings 
consists  in  elevating  those  around  them  by  pouring  out  upon 
them  a  portion  of  their  own  moral  greatness ;  but  Bonaparte, 
who  was  naturally  jealous,  always  isolated  himself,  and 
dreaded  anything  like  sharing.  His  gifts  were  immense 
after  this  campaign,  but  it  was  perceived  that  he  paid  for 
services  in  order  that  he  might  hear  no  more  of  them  ;  and 
his  recompenses  were  so  evidently  the  closing  of  an  account 
that  they  excited  no  gratitude,  while  they  did,  on  the  con- 
trary, revive  claims. 

While  the  momentous  interviews  of  Tilsit  were  taking 
place,  nothing  happened  at  Paris  except  the  removal  of 
the  body  of  the  young  Napoleon  from  Saint  Leu,  in  the 
valley  of  Montmorency  (the  residence  of  Prince  Louis),  to 
Notre  Dame.  The  Arch-Chancellor  received  the  coffin  at 
the  church,  and  it  was  committed  to  the  care  of  the  Car- 
dinal Archbishop  of  Paris  (De  Belloy)  until  the  termina- 
tion of  the  repairs  of  Saint  Denis,  when  it  was  to  be  placed 
in  the  ancient  abbey.  The  vaults  which  had  contained  the 
ashes  of  our  kings  were  then  in  course  of  reconstruction. 
The  scattered  remains,  which  had  been  outraged  during  the 
Reign  of  Terror,  were  now  collected  together,  and  the  Em- 
peror had  given  orders  for  the  erection  of  expiatory  altars 
in  reparation  of  the  sacrilege  that  had  been  perpetrated  upon 
the  illustrious  dead.  This  fine  and  princely  idea  did  him 
great  honor,  and  was  fitly  extolled  by  some  of  the  poets  of 
the  period. 


516  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MU8AT. 

When  the  Emperor  returned  to  France,  his  wife  was 
living  at  Saint  Cloud  with  all  possible  precaution  and  the 
strictest  prudence.  His  mother  was  living  quietly  in  Paris ; 
her  brother,  Cardinal  Fesch,  resided  with  her.  Mme.  Murat 
inhabited  the  Elysee,  and  was  skillfully  conducting  a  number 
of  small  schemes.  The  Princess  Borghese  was  leading  the 
only  kind  of  life  she  understood  or  cared  for.  Louis  and  his 
wife  were  in  the  Pyrenees ;  they  had  left  their  child  with 
the  Empress.  Joseph  Bonaparte  was  reigning  at  Naples, 
benevolently  but  feebly,  disputing  Calabria  with  the  rebels, 
and  his  ports  with  the  English.  Lucien  was  living  at  Rome, 
devoting  himself  to  leisure  and  the  fine  arts.  Jerome  brought 
back  a  crown ;  Murat,  a  strong  desire  to  obtain  one,  and  a 
deeply  cherished  animosity  against  M.  de  Talleyrand,  whom 
he  regarded  as  his  enemy.  He  had  formed  an  intimacy  with 
Maret,  the  Secretary  of  State,  who  was  secretly  jealous  of 
the  Secretary  for  Foreign  Affairs,  and  he  highly  approved 
of  his  wife's  friendship  with  Fouche.  These  four  persons 
were  well  aware  that  the  Emperor  had  conceived,  and  was 
cherishing,  the  project  of  a  divorce  and  an  illustrious  alli- 
ance ;  and  they  endeavored  by  every  means  to  destroy  the 
last  links  which  still  bound  Josephine  to  Bonaparte,  so  that 
they  might  please  the  Emperor  by  aiding  him  to  carry  out 
this  idea,  and  might  also  foil  the  Beauharnais  and  prevent 
M.  de  Talleyrand  from  acquiring  a  fresh  claim  to  the  con- 
fidence of  his  master.  They  wanted  to  have  the  direction 
of  this  affair  in  their  own  hands  only. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  had  been  laboring  for  several  years  to 
acquire  a  European  reputation,  which,  on  the  whole,  he  well 
deserved.  No  doubt  he  had  more  than  once  approached  the 
subject  of  the  divorce,  but  he  was  especially  anxious  that 
this  step  should  lead  to  the  Emperor's  contracting  a  great 
alliance,  of  which  he  (M.  de  Talleyrand)  should  have  the 
negotiation.  So  that,  so  long  as  he  did  not  feel  certain  of 
succeeding  in  his  objects,  he  contrived  to  restrain  the  Em- 
peror in  this  matter  by  representing  to  him  that  it  was 


M.  DE  TALLEYRAND'S  NEW  DIGNITY.  517 

of  the  utmost  importance  to  select  the  fitting  moment  for 
action.  When  he  returned  from  this  campaign,  the  Emperor 
seemed  to  place  more  confidence  than  ever  in  M.  de  Talley- 
rand, who  had  been  very  useful  to  him  in  Poland  and  in 
each  of  his  treaties.  His  new  dignity  gave  M.  de  Talleyrand 
the  right  to  replace  Prince  Joseph  wherever  the  rank  of 
Grand  Elector  called  him ;  but  it  also  obliged  him  to  relin- 
quish the  Ministry  of  Foreign  Affairs,  which  was  beneath 
his  present  rank.  He  was,  however,  entirely  in  Napoleon's 
confidence  with  respect  to  foreign  affairs,  and  was  consulted 
by  him  in  preference  to  the  real"4  Minister.  Some  would-be 
wise  persons  claimed  afterward  to  have  foreseen  that  M.  de 
Talleyrand  was  exchanging  a  secure  post  for  a  brilliant  but 
precarious  position;  and  Bonaparte  himself  let  it  appear 
sometimes  that  he  had  not  returned  from  Tilsit  without  feel- 
ing some  displeasure  at  the  preponderance  of  his  Minister  in 
Europe,  and  that  he  was  annoyed  at  the  generally  prevalent 
belief  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  necessary  to  him.  By 
changing  his  office,  and  availing  himself  of  his  services  in 
consultation  only,  he  made  use  of  him  just  as  he  wished, 
while  reserving  the  power  of  setting  him  aside  or  of  not 
following  his  guidance  whenever  either  course  should  suit 
him.  I  remember  an  anecdote  which  illustrates  this  position 
of  affairs.  M.  de  Champagny,  a  clever  but  narrow-minded 
man,  was  transferred  from  the  Ministry  of  the  Interior  to 
that  of  Foreign  Affairs,  and  M.  de  Talleyrand,  on  presenting 
to  him  the  various  persons  who  were  to  be  under  his  author- 
ity, said :  "  Here,  sir,  are  many  highly  commendable  persons. 
They  will  give  you  every  satisfaction.  You  will  find  them 
capable,  punctual,  exact,  and  trustworthy,  but,  thanks  to  my 
training,  not  at  all  zealous."  At  these  words  M.  de  Cham- 
pagny expressed  some  surprise.  "Yes,"  continued  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  affecting  the  utmost  seriousness ;  "  with  the  ex- 
ception of  a  few  dispatching  clerks,  who  fold  up  their  covers 
with  undue  precipitation,  every  one  here  observes  the  great- 
est calmness,  and  all  are  totally  unused  to  haste.  When  you 


518  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

have  had  to  transact  the  business  of  the  interests  of  Europe 
with  the  Emperor  for  a  little  while,  you  will  see  how  im- 
portant it  is  not  to  be  in  any  hurry  to  seal  and  send  of?  his 
decisions."  M.  de  Talleyrand  amused  the  Emperor  by  re- 
lating this  incident,  and  describing  the  crestfallen  and  as- 
tonished air  with  wrhich  his  successor  received  the  useful 
hint.  It  will  not  be  inappropriate  to  place  here  a  statement 
of  the  cumulative  income  of  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  at 
this  time  in  the  receipt : 

Francs. 

As  Grand  Elector '. 330,000 

.  As  Grand  Chamberlain 40,000 

From  the  Principality  of  Benevento 120,000 

As  Grand  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honor 5,000 

Total 495,000 

Certain  endowments  were  afterward  added  to  this  sum.  His 
personal  fortune  was  estimated  at  three  hundred  thousand 
louis  per  annum ;  I  never  knew  whether  this  was  correct. 
The  various  treaties  brought  him  immense  sums  of  money 
and  presents  of  enormous  value.  He  lived  in  great  style, 
and  made  very  handsome  allowances  to  his  brothers.  He 
bought  the  fine  estate  of  Yalencay,  and  furnished  the  house 
most  luxuriously.  At  the  time  of  which  I  am  now  speak- 
ing he  had  a  fancy  for  books,  and  his  library  was  superb. 
That  year  the  Emperor  ordered  him  to  make  a  sumptuous 
display,  and  to  purchase  a  house  suitable  to  his  dignity  as  a 
prince,  promising  that  he  himself  would  pay  for  it.  M.  de 
Talleyrand  bought  the  Hotel  de  Monaco,  Eue  de  Yarenne, 
enlarged  it,  and  decorated  it  extensively.  The  Emperor, 
having  quarreled  with  him,  did  not  keep  his  word,  but  threw 
him  into  considerable  embarrassment  by  obliging  him  to  pay 
for  this  palace  himself. 

In  concluding  my  sketch  of  the  position  of  the  Imperial 
family,  I  must  add  that  Prince  Eugene  was  then  governing 
his  fair  realm  of  Italy  with  wisdom  and  prudence,  happy  in 


THE  MINISTERS.  519 

the  affection  of  his  wife,  and  rejoicing  in  the  birth  of  their 
little  daughter.* 

The  Arch-Chancellor  Cambaceres,  who  was  cautious  both 
by  nature  and  training,  remained  in  Paris,  maintaining  a  cer- 
tain state  assigned  to  him  by  the  Emperor,  and  which  de- 
lighted his  childish  vanity.  With  equal  prudence  he  pre- 
sided over  the  State  Council,  conducting  the  debates  with 
method  and  discernment,  and  contriving  that  the  prescribed 
limits  should  never  be  exceeded,  f  Le  Bran,  the  Arch- 
Treasurer,  interfered  little  with  affairs ;  he  kept  up  a  certain 
state,  and  managed  his  own  revenues,  giving  no  cause  of 
offense  and  exerting  no  influence. 

The  Ministers  confined  themselves  to  their  respective 
duties,  preserving  the  attitude  of  attentive  and  docile  clerks, 
and  conducting  the  affairs  with  which  they  were  intrusted  on 
a  uniform  system,  which  had  for  its  basis  the  will  and  the 
interests  of  their  master.:):  Each  one's  orders  were  the  same : 
"Promptitude  and  submission"  The  Minister  of  Police 
allowed  himself  a  greater  liberty  of  speech  than  the  others. 
He  was  careful  to  keep  on  good  terms  with  the  Jacobins,  for 
whose  good  behavior  he  made  himself  responsible  to  the  Em- 
peror. On  this  very  account  he  was  a  little  more  indepen- 
dent, for  he  was  at  the  head  of  a  party.  He  had  the  direc- 
tion of  the  various  branches  of  police  set  over  France,  and 
was  master  of  the  details.  Bonaparte  and  he  may  have  often 

*  Doubtless  the  Princess  had  not  followed  the  advice  which  the  Emperor 
gave  her  in  a  letter  written  in  August,  1806  :  "My  daughter,  your  letter  of  the 
10th  of  August  gave  me  great  pleasure.  I  thank  you  for  all  your  kind  expres- 
sions. You  are  right  to  trust  fully  to  me.  Take  great  care  of  your  health  just 
now,  and  try  not  to  present  us  with  a  girl.  I  could  give  you  a  prescription,  but 
you  would  not  believe  in  it ;  it  is  to  take  a  little  pure  wine  every  day." — P.  R. 

f  In  his  capacity  as  a  great  dignitary  of  state  he  received  a  salary  of  three 
hundred  and  thirty  thousand  francs,  or  one  third  of  the  million  which  was  as- 
signed to  a  French  prince ;  and  the  Emperor  added  to  this  the  six  hundred  thou- 
sand francs  which  he  received  as  Consul.  Le  Brun,  the  Arch-Treasurer,  had  a 
salary  of  five  hundred  thousand  francs. 

\  Generally  speaking,  the  Ministers  received  salaries  of  two  hundred  and 
ten  thousand  francs.  The  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs  received  more  than  this. 


520  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

told  each  other  falsehoods  in  their  interviews,  but  probably 
neither  of  them  was  deceived. 

M.  de  Champagny,  subsequently  Due  de  Cadore,  who 
had  been  Minister  of  the  Interior,  was  placed  at  the  head  of 
foreign  affairs,  and  was  succeeded  in  his  former  post  by  State 
Councilor  Cretet,  who  had  been  at  first  Director-General  of 
Public  Works  (Fonts  et  Chaussees).  He  was  not  a  clever 
man,  but  hard-working  and  assiduous,  and  that  was  all  that 
the  Emperor  required. 

Requier,  the  Chief  Judge,  subsequently  Due  de  Massa, 
of  whom  I  have  already  spoken,  administered  justice  with 
persevering  mediocrity.  The  Emperor  was  anxious  that  nei- 
ther the  authority  nor  the  independence  of  the  law  should 
increase. 

The  Prince  de  Neufch&tel  made  an  able  "War  Minister. 
General  Dejean  was  at  the  head  of  the  Commissariat  De- 
partment. Both  were  under  the  personal  superintendence 
of  the  Emperor. 

M.  Gaudin,  the  wise  Minister  of  Finance,  observed  an 
order  and  regularity  in  the  management  of  taxes  and  receipts 
which  rendered  him  valuable  to  the  Emperor.  This  was  his 
sole  employment.  Afterward  he  was  created  Due  de  Gaeta. 

The  Minister  of  the  Treasury,  M.  Mollien,  subsequently 
created  a  count,  showed  more  talent  and  much  financial 
sagacity. 

M.  Portalis,  the  Minister  of  Public  Worship,  was  a  man 
of  talent  and  ability,  and  had  maintained  harmony  between 
the  clergy  and  the  Government.  It  must  be  stated  that  the 
clergy,  out  of  gratitude  for  the  security  and  consideration 
which  they  owed  to  Bonaparte,  submitted  to  him  very  will- 
ingly, and  were  partisans  of  a  despotic  authority  conducive 
to  universal  order.  When  he  demanded  the  levy  of  the  con- 
scripts of  1808,  of  which  I  have  already  spoken,  he  ordered 
the  bishops,  according  to  his  usual  custom,  to  exhort  the 
peasantry  to  submit  to  the  conscription.  Their  pastoral  let- 
ters were  very  remarkable.  In  that  of  the  Bishop  of  Quim- 


DEATH  OF  M.  PORTALIS.  521 

per  were  these  words :  "  "What  French  heart  will  not  ardently 
bless  Divine  Providence  for  having  bestowed  on  this  mag- 
nificent empire,  when  it  was  on  the  point  of  being  for  ever 
crushed  beneath  blood-stained  ruins,  the  only  man  who,  as 
Emperor  and  King,  could  repair  its  misfortunes  and  throw  a 
veil  of  glory  over  the  period  of  its  dishonor  ? " 

The  death  of  M.  Portalis  occurred  during  this  year,  and 
he  was  succeeded  by  an  excellent  though  less  able  man,  M. 
Bigot  de  Pre*ameneu,  Councilor  of  State,  who  was  subse- 
quently made  a  count. 

In  conclusion,  the  Naval  Minister  had  little  occupation 
from  the  time  that  Bonaparte,  giving  up  the  hope  of  subdu- 
ing England  at  sea,  and  vexed  with  the  failure  of  all  his 
maritime  undertakings,  had  ceased  to  interest  himself  in 
naval  affairs.  M.  Decres,  a  man  of  real  ability,  was  alto- 
gether pleasing  to  his  master.  His  manners  were  rather 
rough,  but  he  flattered  Bonaparte  after  an  unusual  fashion. 
He  cared  little  for  public  esteem,  and  was  willing  to  bear  the 
odium  of  the  injustice  with  which  the  Emperor  treated  the 
French  navy,  so  that  it  never  appeared  to  emanate  from 
Bonaparte  himself.  With  unfaltering  devotion,  M.  Decres 
incurred  and  endured  the  resentment  of  all  his  former  com- 
panions and  friends.  The  Emperor  afterward  made  him  a 
duke.* 

At  the  time  of  which  I  am  writing  the  Court  atmosphere 
was  cold  and  silent.  There,  especially,  we  were  all  impressed 
with  the  conviction  that  our  privileges  depended  solely  on 
the  will  of  the  master ;  and,  as  that  will  was  apt  to  be  capri- 
cious, the  difficulty  of  providing  against  it  led  each  individual 
to  avoid  taking  needless  action,  and  to  restrict  himself  to  the 
more  or  less  narrow  circle  of  the  duties  of  his  office.  The 
ladies  of  the  Court  were  still  more  cautious,  and  did  not 
attempt  anything  beyond  winning  admiration  either  by  their 

*  Admiral  D6cres  was  born  in  1761,  and  was  murdered  in  Paris  on  the  7th 
of  December,  1820.  He  was  Naval  Minister  from  1801  to  1814,  and  again  dur- 
ing the  Hundred  Days.— P.  R. 


522  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

beauty  or  their  attire.  In  Paris  itself  people  were  becoming 
more  and  more  indifferent  to  the  working  of  a  mechanism  of 
which  they  could  see  the  results  and  feel  the  power,  but  in 
whose  action  they  knew  they  could  have  no  share.  Social 
life  was  not  wanting  in  attractions.  French  people,  if  they 
are  but  at  peace,  will  immediately  seek  for  pleasure.  But 
credit  was  restricted,  interest  in  national  affairs  was  languid, 
and  all  the  higher  and  nobler  sentiments  of  public  life  were 
wellnigh  paralyzed.  Thoughtful  minds  were  disturbed,  and 
true  citizens  must  have  felt  that  they  were  leading  useless 
lives.  As  a  sort  of  compensation,  they  accepted  the  plea- 
sures of  an  agreeable  and  varied  social  existence.  Civiliza- 
tion was  increased  by  luxury,  which,  while  enervating  the 
mind,  makes  social  relations  pleasanter.  It  procures  for  peo- 
ple of  the  world  a  number  of  little  interests,  which  are  al- 
most always  sufficient  for  them,  and  with  which  they  do  not 
feel  ashamed  of  being  satisfied,  -when  for  a  length  of  time 
they  have  been  suffering  from  the  greater  political  disorders. 
The  recollection  of  the  latter  was  still  fresh  in  our  memory, 
and  it  made  us  prize  this  period  of  brilliant  slavery  and  ele- 
gant idleness. 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

(1807.) 

Vexations  at  Court— Friendship  with  M.  de  Talleyrand— General  Eapp— General 
Clarke— Session  of  the  Legislative  Bodies— The  Emperor's  Speech— Fetes  of  the 
15th  of  August— Marriage  of  Je"r6me  Bonaparte— Death  of  Le  Brun— The  Abbe 
Delille— M.  de  Chateaubriand— Dissolution  of  the  Tribunate— The  Court  re- 
moves to  Fontainebleau. 

WHEN  the  Emperor  reached  Paris  on  the  27th  of  July, 
1807,  I  was  still  at  Aix-la--Chapelle,  and  was  beginning  to 
feel  anxious  as  to  the  temper  in  which  he  had  returned.  I 
have  already  said  that  this  was  a  prevailing  uneasiness  at 
Court  whenever  he  was  expected.  I  could  make  no  inquiries, 
for  none  dared  to  write  openly  to  their  correspondents ;  thus 
it  was  only  when  I  myself  returned  that  I  could  learn  any 
particulars. 

The  Emperor  came  back  elated  at  his  inconceivable  good 
fortune,  and  it  soon  became  evident  that  his  imagination  ex- 
aggerated the  distance  between  himself  and  every  other  per- 
son. He  showed,  moreover,  increased  indignation  at  what 
he  called  the  "gossip  of  the  Faubourg  Saint  Germain." 
The  first  time  that  he  saw  M.  de  Kemusat,  he  rebuked  him 
for  not  having  given  information  respecting  the  persons  in 
society  in  Paris,  in  some  letters  he  wrote  to  Duroc,  Grand 
Marshal  of  the  Palace.  "  You  are  in  a  position,"  said  he, 
"  to  know  what  is  said  in  a  number  of  drawing-rooms,  and 
it  is  your  duty  to  keep  me  informed.  I  can  not  accept  the 
slight  excuses  on  which  you  have  withheld  information  from 
me."  To  this  M.  de  Eemusat  replied  that  there  was  very 


524  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

little  to  withhold,  because  people  were  naturally  careful  •  as 
to  what  they  said  before  him,  and  that  he  would  have  been 
loath  to  attach  any  importance  to  idle  words,  which  might 
have  caused  serious  consequences  to  those  who  had  uttered 
them,  often  without  any  really  hostile  feeling.  On  such  an 
answer  being  made  to  him,  the  Emperor  would  shrug  his 
shoulders,  turn  on  his  heel,  and  say  to  Duroc  or  to  Savary : 
"  I  am  very  sorry,  but  Ke'musat  will  not  get  on ;  he  is  not 
devoted  to  me  as  I  understand  devotion." 

It  may  be  thought,  at  least,  that  a  man  of  honor,  who 
was  determined  rather  to  mar  his  prospects  than  to  purchase 
fortune  by  a  sacrifice  of  his  self-respect,  would  have  been 
placed  by  that  very  resolution  out  of  danger  of  those  quarrels 
which  result  from  what,  alike  in  city  and  Court,  is  called 
tittle-tattle.  But  such  was  not  the  case ;  Bonaparte  liked 
nobody  to  be  at  peace,  and  he  knew  admirably  well  how  to 
compromise  or  embroil  those  who  most  desired  to  live  in 
quiet. 

It  will  be  remembered  that,  during  the  stay  of  the  Em- 
press at  Mayence,  some  ladies  of  the  Court,  of  whom  Mme. 
de  la  Kochefoucauld  was  the  chief,  had  ventured  to  criticise 
the  Prussian  war  with  some  severity,  and  to  compassionate 
Prince  Louis,  and  still  more  the  beautiful  and  cruelly  insulted 
Queen.  The  Empress,  displeased  by  their  freedom,  had 
written  full  accounts  to  her  husband  of  this  movement  of 
sympathy,  begging  him  never  to  let  it  be  known  that  she 
had  mentioned  the  matter  to  him.  That  she  had  done  so 
she  confided  to  M.  de  Remusat,  who  expressed  his  disap- 
proval, but  kept  her  secret.  When  M.  de  Talleyrand  joined 
the  Emperor,  he  too  related  what  had  been  taking  place  at 
Mayence,  but  more  with  the  intention  of  amusing  Napoleon 
than  from  any  hostility  toward  the  Lady  of  Honor,  whom  he 
neither  liked  nor  disliked.  Bonaparte  was,  however,  greatly 
displeased  with  her,  and  the  first  time  they  met  he  reproached 
her  with  his  usual  violence  for  her  opinions  and  her  utter- 
ances. Mme.  de  la  Eochefoucauld  was  taken  by  surprise, 


VEXATIONS  AT  COURT.  525 

and,  for  want  of  a  better  excuse,  denied  everything.  The 
Emperor  rejoined  by  a  positive  reiteration,  and,  when  she  in- 
quired who  had  made  this  tine  report  about  her,  he  instantly 
named  M.  de  Remusat.  On  hearing  this,  Mme.  de  la  Roche- 
f oucauld  was  astounded.  She  was  friendly  to  my  husband 
and  to  me ;  and,  believing  rightly  that  she  might  rely  on  our 
discretion,'  she  had  often  confided  her  most  secret  thoughts 
to  us.  She  felt,  therefore,  extreme  surprise  and  anger,  the 
more  so  that  she  herself  was  a  sincere  person,  and  incapable 
of  such  baseness  as  that  attributed  to  my  husband. 

Being  thus  prejudiced  against  him,  she  avoided  any  op- 
portunity of  explanation,  but  was  cold  and  constrained  in  her 
demeanor.  For  a  long  time  he  could  not  understand  the 
reason  of  the  estrangement ;  but,  a  few  months  afterward, 
some  circumstances  connected  with  the  divorce  rendered  cer- 
tain interviews  and  conversations  between  Mme.  de  la  Roche- 
foucauld and  ourselves  necessary,  and  she  questioned  my  hus- 
band on  the  matter  which  I  have  just  related,  and  then  learned 
the  whole  truth.  She  had  made  an  opportunity  of  speaking 
freely  to  the  Empress,  who  did  not  undeceive  her,  but  al- 
lowed suspicion  still  to  rest  on  M.  de  Remusat,  adding  only 
that  M.  de  Talleyrand  had  probably  said  more  than  he. 
Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld  was  an  intimate  friend  of  M.  de 
Segur,  Grand  Master  of  Ceremonies,  and  she  confided  her 
feelings  to  him.  For  a  time  this  caused  a  coolness  between 
him  and  us ;  it  also  set  him  against  M.  de  Talleyrand,  the 
sharpness  and  occasional  bitterness  of  whose  satire  leagued 
all  commonplace  people  together  against  him,  and  he  amused 
himself  mercilessly  at  their  expense.  They  took  their  re- 
venge when  and  how  they  could.  The  Emperor  did  not 
confine  his  reproaches  to  persons  of  the  Court ;  he  complained 
likewise  of  high  society  in  Paris.  He  rebuked  M.  Fouche 
for  the  imperfection  of  his  supervision ;  he  sent  certain  ladies 
into  exile,  threatened  some  persons  of  distinction,  and  im- 
plied that,  to  avoid  the  effects  of  his  displeasure,  former  acts 
of  indiscretion  must  be  repaired  by  steps  which  would  show 


526  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

that  his  authority  was  recognized.  Many  persons  felt  them- 
selves in  consequence  obliged  to  be  presented  at  Court ;  some 
few  made  their  own  safety  a  pretext  for  this,  and  the  splen- 
dor of  his  Court  was  increased. 

As  he  always  took  care  to  make  his  presence  felt  by  dis- 
turbing everybody,  he  did  not  spare  his  own  family.  He 
severely,  though  very  ineffectually,  scolded  his  sister  Pau- 
line for  her  lightness  of  conduct,  which  Prince  Borghese 
beheld  with  real  or  affected  indifference.  Nor  did  he  hide 
from  his  sister  Caroline  that  he  was  aware  of  her  secret  and 
ambitious  projects.  She  bent  before  the  inevitable  storm 
with  her  usual  suppleness,  and  brought  him  by  degrees  to 
own  that,  with  such  blood  running  in  her  veins,  she  was  not 
very  guilty  in  desiring  a  superior  rank,  while  she  took  care 
to  make  her  defense  with  all  her  usual  charm.  "When  he 
had  thus,  to  use  his  own  expression,  roused  up  everybody 
all  round,  he  felt  satisfied  with  the  terror  he  had  excited, 
and,  appearing  to  forget  what  had  passed,  resumed  his  cus- 
tomary way  of  life. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  whose  return  occurred -a  little  later, 
expressed  great  pleasure  at  meeting  M.  de  Remusat.  He 
now  took  up  a  habit  of  frequently  coming  to  see  me,  and 
our  intimacy  became  closer.  I  recollect  that,  at  first,  not- 
withstanding the  gratitude  with  which  his  kindness  inspired 
me,  and  the  great  pleasure  I  felt  in  his  conversation,  I  was 
for  a  long  time  ill  at  ease  in  his  company.  M.  de  Talleyrand 
was  justly  reckoned  as  a  very  clever  man;  he  was  a  very 
important  personage ;  but  he  was  said  to  be  hard  to  please 
and  of  a  sarcastic  disposition.  His  manners,  although  highly 
polished,  seem  to  place  the  person  whom  he  is  addressing  in 
a  relatively  inferior  position.  Nevertheless,  as  the  customs 
of  society  in  France  always  accord  to  women  a  certain  im- 
portance and  liberty,  they  could,  if  they  chose,  hold  their 
own  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  likes  women  and  is  not 
afraid  of  them.  Yet  few  of  them  chose  to  do  so ;  the  desire 
of  pleasing  restrained  them.  They  hold  themselves  in  a 


FRIENDSHIP   WITH  M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.         527 

sort  of  bondage  to  him,  and,  in  fact,  to  use  a  common  ex- 
pression, they  have  spoiled  him.  Lastly,  as  he  is  reserved, 
blase  on  a  multitude  of  subjects,  indifferent  on  many  others, 
and  with  feelings  difficult  to  touch,  a  woman  who  designs  to 
conquer  or  retain  him,  or  even  only  to  amuse  him,  under- 
takes a  hard  task. 

All  that  I  knew  about  him,  all  that  I  discovered  in  be- 
coming more  intimate  with  him,  made  me  constrained  in  his 
presence.  I  was  gratified  by  his  friendliness,  but  I  did  not 
venture  to  tell  him  so ;  I  was  afraid  of  disclosing  my  habit- 
ual thoughts  and  anxieties,  because  I  imagined  they  would 
excite  his  sarcasm.  I  asked  him  no  questions  either  about 
himself  or  on  public  affairs,  for  fear  he  might  think  me 
curious.  My  mind  was  strained  in  his  presence,  so  that  I 
sometimes  experienced  actual  fatigue.  I  listened  to  him 
with  the  greatest  attention,  in  order  that,  even  if  I  could 
not  always  reply  fittingly,  at  least  I  should  have  procured 
him  the  pleasure  of  an  attentive  auditor;  for  I  own  that 
pride  was  flattered  by  his  preference  for  me.  "When  I  think 
it  all  over  now,  I  am  amused  at  the  mingled  distress  and 
pleasure^ which  I  experienced  when  my  folding-doors  were 
opened  (on  both  sides)  and  the  Prince  of  Benevento  was  an- 
nounced. Large  drops  sometimes  stood  on  my  forehead 
from  the  efforts  I  made  to  express  myself  wittily,  and  there 
is  no  doubt  that  I  was  in  consequence  less  agreeable  than 
had  I  behaved  more  naturally,  when,  at  any  rate,  I  should 
have  had  the  advantage  of  sincerity  and  of  harmony  in  my 
whole  deportment.  Although  naturally  grave  and  inclined 
to  deep  feeling,  I  tried  to  emulate  the  lightness  with  which 
he  could  pass  from  one  subject  to  another.  I  was  kind- 
hearted  by  nature,  and  averse  to  malicious  talk,  and  yet  I 
was  always  ready  to  smile  at  his  jests.  At  the  beginning, 
then,  he  exerted  over  me  the  influence  which  was  customary 
to  him ;  and,  had  our  intimacy  continued  on  the  same  foot- 
ing, I  should  have  seemed  to  him  but  one  woman  the  more 
to  swell  the  ranks  of  those  worshipers  who  rivaled  each 
39 


528  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

other  in  applauding  his  defects  and  encouraging  the  worst 
points  of  his  character.  He  would  probably  have  ended  by 
breaking  with  me,  for  I  should  have  ill  sustained  a  role  for 
which  I  was  so  little  suited.  I  will  presently  relate  the 
painful  circumstances  which  made  me  resume  my  natural 
character,  and  which  caused  me  to  conceive  a  sincere  affec- 
tion for  him,  which  has  never  wavered. 

Our  new-formed  intimacy  was  soon  remarked  at  Court, 
and  the  Emperor  did  not  at  first  seem  displeased.  M.  de 
Talleyrand  was  not  without  influence  over  him ;  the  opinions 
he  pronounced  in  speaking  of  M.  de  Remusat  were  of  service 
to  us ;  a  few  words  let  us  perceive  that  we  were  held  in  in- 
creased esteem.  The  Empress,  who  found  in  most  things  a 
subject  for  fear,  showed  me  great  kindness,  thinking  I  might 
serve  her  cause  with  M.  de  Talleyrand.  His  enemies  at 
Court  watched  us,  but,  as  he  was  powerful,  we  were  treated 
with  great  consideration.  His  numerous  circle  of  acquaint- 
ance began  to  look  with  curious  eyes  on  a  quiet,  straightfor- 
ward, and  taciturn  man,  who  never  flattered  and  was  incapa- 
ble of  intrigue,  yet  whose  abilities  were  praised,  and  whose 
society  was  courted  by  M.  de  Talleyrand.  I  myself,  a  little 
person  of  twenty-seven  years  of  age,  ordinary-looking,  cold 
and  reserved,  in  nowise  remarkable,  devoted  to  the  duties  of 
a  pure  and  virtuous  life,  thus  distinguished  by  the  notice  of 
so  eminent  a  personage,  also  became  an  object  of  attention ! 
It  was  probable  that  M.  de  Talleyrand,  being  just  then  in 
want  of  amusement,  found  something  novel  and  attractive  in 
gaining  the  affection  of  two  persons  completely  outside  his 
own  sphere  of  ideas,  so  that,  when  wearied  by  the  constraint 
of  his  existence,  he  turned  sometimes  with  relief  to  a  com- 
panionship which  he  knew  he  could  trust ;  while  our  attach- 
ment to  him,  openly  professed  at  a  time  when  his  disgrace 
shook  our  own  position,  caused  a  solid  friendship  to  succeed 
to  mutual  liking. 

It  was  then  that,  visiting  oftener  at  his  house,  which  we 
had  not  before  this  been  in  the  habit  of  frequenting,  I  be- 


FRIENDSHIP   WITH  M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.         529 

came  acquainted  with  a  section  of  society  hitherto  almost 
unknown  to  me.  There  were  always  a  number  of  people  at 
M.  de  Talleyrand's — foreigners  who  paid  him  obsequious  at- 
tention, great  nobles  of  the  former  order  of  things,  and  men 
of  the  new,  all  wondering  at  finding  themselves  under  the 
same  roof — all  remarkable  for  some  reason  or  other,  but 
whose  character  was  not  always  equal  to  their  celebrity. 
Well-known  women  were  there  also,  of  whom  it  must  be 
said  he  had  in  general  been  rather  the  lover  than  the  friend, 
and  who  were  on  the  kind  of  terms  with  him  that  he  pre- 
ferred. 

His  wife  must  be  named  first  among  the  persons  to  whom 
I  allude.  Her  beauty  was*  daily  waning  on  account  of  her 
increasing  size.  She  was  always  handsomely  dressed,  and 
occupied  by  right  the  place  of  honor,  but  was  unacquainted 
with  most  of  the  company.  M.  de  Talleyrand  never  seemed 
to  perceive  that  she  was  present ;  he  never  spoke  to  her,  still 
less  did  he  listen  to  what  she  said,  and  I  believe  he  suffered 
acutely,  but  with  resignation,  for  the  error  which  had  forced 
him  into  this  extraordinary  marriage.  His  wife  seldom  went 
to  Court :  the  Emperor  treated  her  coldly,  and  she  received 
no  consideration  there.  It  never  occurred  to  M.  de  Talley- 
rand to  complain  of  this,  nor  yet  of  the  compensation  she 
was  said  to  seek  in  the  attentions  of  certain  strangers.  Bona- 
parte would  sometimes  jest  on  this  subject  with  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand, who  would  answer  with  indifference  and  let  the 
matter  drop.  Mme.  de  Talleyrand  habitually  disliked  all 
her  husband's  friends,  whether  men  or  women.  It  is  prob- 
able that  she  made  no  exception  in  my  favor,  but  I  always 
behaved  to  her  with  such  ceremonious  civility,  I  held  myself 
so  totally  aloof  from  her  private  affairs,  that  we  scarcely  came 
into  contact. 

In  these  reception-rooms  I  also  met  some  old  friends  of 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  began  to  regard  me  with  curiosity, 
much  to  my  amusement.  Among  these  were  the  Duchesse 
de  Luynes  and  the  Princesse  de  Yaudemont,  both  of  them 


530        MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

excellent  women.  They  were  sincerely  attached  and  true  to 
him,  and  very  kind  to  me  because  they  saw  that  my  regard 
for  him  was  sincere,  straightforward,  and  without  any  ulte- 
rior design.  The  Vicorntesse  de  Laval  was  less  well  pleased, 
and,  being  rather  ill-natured,  she  judged  me  with  some  se- 
verity. The  Princesse  de  Lieskiewitz,  sister  of  Prince  Ponia- 
towski,  had  lately  made  the  acquaintance  of  M.  de  Talleyrand 
at  "Warsaw,  and  had  followed  him  to  Paris.  This  poor  lady, 
notwithstanding  her  forty-five  years  and  her  glass  eye,  was 
unfortunately  passionately  in  love  with  him ;  and  her  attach- 
ment, of  which  he  was  manifestly  weary,  made  her  alive  to 
the  least  preference  shown  by  him.  It  is  possible  she  may 
have  honored  me  with  a  little  jealousy.  The  Princesse  de 

X yielded  to  the   same  infirmity,  for  it  was  truly  an 

infirmity  to  "love"  M.  de  Talleyrand.  I  also  met  the 
Duchesse  de  Fleury,*  a  very  clever  woman,  who  had  ob- 
tained a  divorce  from  her  husband,  M.  de  Montrond ;  f 
Mesdames  de  Bellegarde,  whose  only  claim  to  importance  in 

society  was  their  extreme  license  of  speech ;  Mme.  de  K , 

to  whom  M.  de  Talleyrand  paid  attention,  in  order  to  keep 
on  good  terms  with  the  Grand  Equerry ;  Mme.  de  Brignoli, 
one  of  the  Ladies-in- Waiting — a  very  agreeable  and  elegant 
Genoese ;  and  Mme.  de  Souza,  formerly  Mme.  de  Flahaut— 
a  talented  woman,  who  had  been  in  her  early  youth  a  friend 
of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  for  whom  he  still  retained  much 
regard.  She  had  written  several  pretty  tales,  and  was,  at 
the  time  of  which  I  speak,  the  wife  of  M.  de  Souza,  who 
had  been  ambassador  to  Portugal.  Lastly,  I  met  the  am- 


*  The  Duchesse  de  Fleury  resumed  her  maiden  name,  calling  herself  the 
Comtesse  Aimee  de  Coigny.  Andre  Chenier's  ode,  "A  la  Jeune  Captive,"  was 
written  for  her. 

f  Montrond  is  a  professional  gambler  and  a  well-known  wit.  He  amused 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  to  whose  reputation  his  intimacy  with  this  person  was  hurt- 
ful ;  he  was  always  in  opposition  to  the  Government,  was  exiled  by  the  Emper- 
or, and  was  defended  by  M.  de  Talleyrand  with  an  obstinacy  worthy  of  a  better 
cause. 


FRIENDSHIP   WITH  M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.        531 

bassadresses,  the  foreign  princesses  then  in  Paris,  and  a  great 
number  of  all  the  distinguished  people  in  Europe. 

I  was  entertained  by  this  social  magic  lantern;  but, 
warned  by  an  instinctive  feeling  to  make  no  friendships 
among  the  crowd,  I  always  stood  on  the  strictest  ceremony, 
and  much  preferred  receiving  M.  de  Talleyrand  at  my  own 
fireside.  My  own  circle  felt  some  surprise  at  his  so  frequent- 
ly joining  us — some  of  my  friends  were  even  alarmed ;  for 
he  inspired  a  general  apprehension  lest,  immersed  in  impor- 
tant affairs  as  he  was,  he  might  find  himself  in  a  dangerous 
position  and  drag  us  down  in  his  fall.  "We  did  not  share 
the  alarm  of  these  friends,  as  perhaps  we  ought  to  have  done. 
M.  de  Remusat's  office  as  First  Chamberlain  brought  us  into 
contact  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  it  was  pleasanter  that 
our  intercourse  should  be  friendly ;  we  held  aloof  from  all 
serious  affairs,  and  had  no  thought  of  benefiting  by  his  influ- 
ence. Disinterested  persons  are  apt  to  deceive  themselves 
on  this  head ;  they  imagine  that  others  must  know,  or  at  any 
rate  must  perceive,  what  their  real  motives  are,  and  as  they 
act  with  simple  sincereity  they  do  not  apprehend  that  they 
will  be  suspected  of  double-dealing.  It  was  a  great  blunder, 
at  that  time,  to  expect  to  be  estimated  at  one's  real  worth. 

The  Emperor  saw  Louis's  second  son  when  he  went  to 
Saint  Cloud,  and  treated  him  affectionately,  so  that,  the  Em- 
press began  to  hope  he  would  think  of  this  child  as  his  heir, 
as  he  had  formerly  thought  of  the  elder  boy.  Bonaparte  had 
been  impressed  by  the  extreme  rapidity  of  the  progress  of 
the  disease  that  had  so  suddenly  carried  off  the  elder  brother, 
and  he  offered  a  competitive  prize  of  twelve  thousand  francs 
for  essays  upon  the  malady  called  croup.  Some  valuable 
works  were  published  in  consequence. 

The  pacification  of  Europe  did  not  at  once  bring  back  the 
whole  army  to  France.  In  the  first  place,  the  King  of 
Sweden,  prevailed  on  by  the  English  Government,  and  in 
spite  of  the  opposition  of  his  people,  announced  the  rupture 
of  his  armistice  with  us.  Thirteen  days  after  the  signature 


532  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

of  peace  at  Tilsit,  a  partial  war  broke  out  in  Pomerania. 
Marshal  Mortier  was  at  the  head  of  this  expedition ;  he  en- 
tered Stralsund,  and  obliged  the  King  of  Sweden  to  take  ship 
and  escape.  On  this  the  English  sent  a  considerable  fleet  to 
the  Baltic,  and,  having  attacked  Denmark,  laid  siege  to  Co- 
penhagen, of  which  they  soon  obtained  possession.  These  va- 
rious events  were  chronicled  in  the  "  Moniteur,"  accompanied 
with  notes  attacking  the  English  as  usual,  while  the  aberration 
of  mind  of  the  King  of  Sweden  was  proclaimed  to  Europe.* 

Speaking  of  the  subsidy  which  the  English  Government 
allowed  the  Swedes  for  carrying  on  the  war,  the  Emperor 
expressed  himself  as  follows  in  the  "  Moniteur  " :  "  Gallant 
and  unfortunate  Swedes,  this  subsidy  costs  you  dear!  If 
England  could  only  repair  the  harm  she  does  to  your  trade 
and  to  your  honor,  or  could  replace  the  blood  she  has  already 
cost  and  still  costs  you !  But  you  must  feel  that  you  are  to 
be  pitied  for  having  lost  all  your  privileges  and  all  consid- 
eration, and  for  being,  thus  defenseless  and  disorganized,  sub- 
ject to  the  caprices  of  an  invalid  King." 

General  Rapp  f  remained  at  Dantzic  as  governor,  with  a 
garrison.  He  was  a  brave  and  honest  man — rather  rough 
in  his  ways,  faithful,  frank,  careless  of  what  went  on  about 
him,  and  of  everything  except  the  orders  he  received.  He 
served  his  master  with  great  fidelity,  more  than  once  nearly 
losing  his  life  for  him,  without  having  ever  made  the  least 
inquiry  into  the  qualities  or  the  vices  of  his  character. 

The  Emperor  also  considered  'himself  bound  to  support 
the  new  constitution  established  in  Poland  by  the  King  of 
Saxony,  and  sent  a  considerable  garrison  thither  to  be  added 
to  the  Polish  garrison.  Marshal  Davoust  had  the  command 
of  this  cantonment.  By  thus  dispersing  his  troops  through 
Europe,  Bonaparte  secured  his  influence  over  his  allies,  kept 

*  It  would  appear  that,  in  fact,  his  mind  was  not  very  sound.  We  are 
speaking  of  Gustavus  IV.,  who  was  dethroned  in  1809. — P.  R. 

f  Aide-de-camp  to  Bonaparte.  He  waa  made  a  peer  of  France  by  the  last 
decree  passed  in  the  year  1819. 


GENERAL   CLARKE.  533 

his  soldiers  in  practice,  and  relieved  France  from  the  burden 
of  supporting  so  many  armed  men.  His  aggressive  policy 
obliged  him  to  be  always  in  readiness;  and,  moreover,  to 
insure  the  entire  devotion  of  his  army,  it  was  necessary  to 
keep  the  men  far  from  their  homes.  He  succeeded  in  so 
completely  altering  the  nature  of  his  troops  that  they  be- 
came unreservedly  devoted  to  his  service ;  they  lost  all  na- 
tional sentiment,  and  cared  only  for  their  chief,  for  victory, 
and  for  plunder,  which  in  the  eyes  of  a  soldier  is  a  great 
embellishment  of  danger.  They  drew  down  by  degrees  on 
the  fatherland  which  they  had  forgotten  those  feelings  of 
hatred  and  revenge  which  resulted  in  the  European  crusade 
against  us  in  1813  and  1814. 

Fresh  adulation  awaited  the  Emperor  on  his  return. 
Language  was  exhausted  for  formulas  of  praise,  to  which  he 
listened  with  disdainful  composure.  There  is  little  doubt, 
however,  that  his  indifference  was  feigned;  for  he  loved 
praise  from  no  matter  what  lips,  and  more  than  once  he  was 
duped  by  it.  There  were  men  who  had  influence  over  him 
only  because  their  compliments  were  inexhaustible.  Unfail- 
ing admiration,  even  though  somewhat  foolishly  expressed, 
never  failed  to  please  him. 

On  the  10th  of  August  he  sent  a  message  to  the  Senate, 
announcing  the  elevation  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  to  the  dignity 
of  Vice-Grand  Elector,  and  that  of  Marshal  Berthier  to  the 
rank  of  Vice-Grand  Constable.  General  Clarke  succeeded 
to  the  latter  as  Minister  of  War,  and  found  opportunities  for 
displaying  the  devoted  admiration  to  which  I  have  alluded, 
even  more  fully  than  before.  The  Emperor's  habitual  at- 
tention to  all  war  matters,  the  high  intelligence  of  Berthier, 
Major-General  of  the  army,  and  the  careful  administration 
of  General  Dejean,  the  chief  of  the  Commissariat,  made  any 
great  abilities  in  General  Clarke  unnecessary.  Punctual, 
upright,  and  submissive,  he  fulfilled  all  the  requirements  of 
his  position.  MM.  Champagny  and  Cretet  obtained  the  two 
ministerial  posts  of  which  I  have  spoken,  and  State  Coun 


534  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

cillor  Eegnault  was  made  State  Secretary  to  the  Imperial 
Family. 

Meanwhile  we  read  every  day  of  fresh  military  promo- 
tions, of  the  distribution  of  rewards,  of  the  creation  of  offi- 
cial posts — in  fact,  of  everything  that  tends  to  keep  ambi- 
tion, covetousness,  and  vanity  on  the  alert.  Then  the  Corps 
Legislatif  opened  its  session.  M.  de  Fontanes,  who,  as  usual, 
was  named  President,  made,  as  usual,  a  fine  speech  on  the 
truly  brilliant  position  of  France.  A  very  great  number  of 
laws  appertaining  to  rule  and  order  were  brought  before  the 
Assembly  for  its  sanction,  as  was  likewise  a  budget  which 
proclaimed  our  finances  to  be  in  a  flourishing  condition ;  and, 
lastly,  an  account  of  the  public  works  of  all  kinds  in  contem- 
plation, or  begun,  or  already  terminated,  in  all  parts  of  the 
Empire.  The  cost  of  all  these  was  defrayed  by  the  contri- 
butions exacted  throughout  Europe,  and  all  France  might 
witness  improvements  which  nevertheless  did  not  augment  a 
single  tax.  The  Emperor,  in  addressing  the  legislative  bod- 
ies, spoke  to  the  whole  French  nation ;  gave  them  an  account 
of  his  victories ;  mentioned  the  5,179  officers  and  the  123,000 
subalterns  and  privates  taken  prisoners  in  this  war ;  spoke  of 
the  complete  conquest  of  Prussia,  of  his  soldiers  encamped 
-on  the  banks  of  the  Vistula,  of  the  fall  of  the  power  of  Eng- 
land, which,  he  said,  must  be  the  result  of  so  many  victories ; 
and  ended  by  an  expression  of  satisfaction  with  the  nation, 
which  had  so  faithfully  served  him  in  gaining  for  him  such 
triumphant  success.  "Frenchmen,"  he  said,  "I  am  well 
pleased  with  you ;  you  are  a  good  and  a  great  people." 

The  opening  of  the  Corps  Legislatif  was  an  imposing 
ceremony.  The  hall  had  been  lavishly  decorated  ;  the  dress 
of  the  deputies  was  handsome,  that  of  the  courtiers  sur- 
rounding the  Emperor  was  magnificent,  and  he  himself  was 
resplendent  in  gold  and  diamonds  on  that  day.  Although 
in  every  ceremonial  he  was  too  precipitate,  the  great  pomp 
he  insisted  upon  took  the  place  of  that  dignity  which  was 
wanting.  When  Bonaparte,  in  the  course  of  any  ceremony, 


BONAPARTE'S  INCORRECT  PRONUNCIATION.    535 

had  to  walk  toward  the  throne  prepared  for  him,  he  always 
seemed  to  rush  at  it.  One  could  not  but  feel,  on  observing 
him,  that  this  was  no  legitimate  sovereign  taking  peaceful 
possession  of  the  royal  seat  bequeathed  to  him  by  his  ances- 
tors ;  but  an  all-powerful  master,  who,  each  time  that  he  wore 
the  crown,  seemed  to  reiterate  the  words  he  had  once  uttered 
at  Milan,  "  Guai  a  chi  la  tocchera." 

On  these  state  occasions  Bonaparte's  incorrect  pronuncia- 
tion was  a  great  drawback.  In  general  he  had  his  speech 
drawn  up  for  him.  M.  Maret,  I  believe,  most  frequently  un- 
dertook that  task,  but  sometimes  it  fell  to  M.  Yignaud,  or 
even  to  M.  de  Fontanes ;  and  he  would  try  to  learn  it  by 
heart,  but  with  little  success ;  for  the  least  constraint  was  in- 
supportable to  him.  He  always  ended  by  resolving  to  read 
his  speech,  and  it  was  copied  out  for  him  in  a  large  hand ; 
for  he  was  little  accustomed  to  read  writing,  and  could 
have  made  nothing  out  of  his  own.  Then  he  would  be  in- 
structed in  the  proper  pronounciation  of  the  words;  but 
when  he  came  to  speak  he  forgot  his  lesson,  and  in  a  muf- 
fled voice,  with  lips  scarcely  parted,  would  read  the  speech 
in  an  accent  more  strange  even  than  it  was  foreign,  most 
unpleasant,  and  indeed  vulgar.  I  have  heard  numbers  of 
persons  say  that  they  always  felt  a  painful  sensation  on  hear- 
ing him  speak  in  public.  The  indisputable  testimony  of  his 
accent  to  the  fact  that  he  was  a  foreigner  struck  painfully 
on  the  ear  and  the  mind  alike.  I  have  myself  sometimes 
experienced  this  involuntary  sensation. 

The  fetes  of  the  15th  of  August  were  splendid.  The 
whole  Court,  glittering  with  precious  stones,  was  present  at  a 
concert  in  the  palace,  and  at  the  ballet  which  followed  it. 
The  reception-rooms  of  the  Tuileries  were  thronged  with  a 
brilliant  and  gorgeous  company;  there  were  ambassadors, 
the  greatest  nobles  of  all  Europe,  princes,  and  many  kings 
who,  although  new-made,  appeared  in  becoming  state.  There, 
too,  were  lovely  women,  magnificently  attired,  who,  together 
with  the  first  musicians  in  the  world,  and  all  that  the  opera- 


536  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

ballets  could  lend  of  grace  and  elegance,  combined  to  form  a 
scene  of  Oriental  splendor. 

Public  games  and  rejoicings  were  given  to  the  city  of 
Paris.  The  Parisians,  who  are  naturally  gay  when  gathered 
together,  and  eager  to  join  any  crowd,  hurried  into  the 
streets  to  see  the  illuminations  and  the  fireworks,  and  showed 
the  delight  they  felt  in  scenes  of  pleasure  and  in  the  beauty 
of  the  season.  But  there  were  no  acclamations  in  honor  of 
the  Emperor.  There  seemed  to  be  no  thought  of  him,  as 
the  people  enjoyed  the  amusements  he  had  provided  for 
them ;  but  every  one  diverted  himself  according  to  his  own 
character  and  taste,  and  these,  perhaps,  make  the  French  the 
least  serious  people  in  the  world,  but  the  most  pleasant. 

English  people  who  were  present  at  these  rejoicings  were 
quite  astonished  at  the  good  order,  the  frank  gayety,  and  the 
harmony  which  reign  on  such  occasions  throughout  all  classes 
of  society.  Every  one  enjoys  himself,  and  does  not  think  of 
interfering  with  his  neighbor's  enjoyment ;  there  is  no  quar- 
reling nor  ill  humor,  no  revolting  and  dangerous  drunkenness. 
Women  and  children  may  mix  with  impunity  in  the  crowd, 
and  are  protected.  People  who  are  strangers  to  each  other 
take  their  pleasure  together ;  they  sing  and  laugh  in  chorus, 
though  they  have  never  met  before.  On  such  occasions  an 
unobservant  sovereign  might  easily  be  misled.  This  consti- 
tutional hilarity,  temporarily  called  forth  by  extraneous  cir- 
cumstances, may  be  mistaken  for  the  expression  of  the  feel- 
ings of  a  contented  and  loyal  people.  But,  if  the  sovereigns 
who  are  destined  to  reign  over  Frenchmen  do  not  want  to 
be  deceived,  they  will  interrogate  their  own  conscience 
rather  than  the  popular  cry,  if  they  would  learn  whether 
they  inspire  affection  and  give  happiness  to  their  people. 

In  this  respect  the  flattery  of  a  Court  is  really*  astonish- 
ing ;  numbers  of  courtiers,  in  describing  the  behavior  of  the 
Parisian  public,  endeavored  to  represent  it  to  the  Emperor 
as  a  proof  of  the  people's  gratitude  toward  him  !  I  will  not 
affirm  that  he  was  never  deceived  by  this,  but  for  the  most 


MARRIAGE  OF  jRME  BONAPARTE.  53? 

part  lie  remained  stolidly  unmoved.  Bonaparte  seldom  lis- 
tened to  others,  and  joyousness  was  foreign  to  his  nature. 

During  the  month  of  August  several  of  the  German 
princes  arrived  in  Paris — some  in  order  to  visit  the  Emperor, 
others  to  solicit  some  favor,  or  some  liberty  in  behalf  of 
their  petty  states. 

The  Prince  Primate  of  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine 
came  at  about  this  time,  to  celebrate  the  marriage  of  Prin- 
cess Catherine  of  Wiirtemberg,  who  herself  arrived  on  the 
21st  of  August.  She  was,  I  think,  about  twenty  years  of  age, 
and  was  a  nice-looking  girl ;  her  figure  was  already  rather 
stout,  and  seemed  to  indicate  that  she  would  take  after  her 
father,  whose  size  was  so  enormous  that  he  could  only  sit  on 
chairs  specially  constructed  for  him,  and  had  to  dine  at  a 
table  which  had  been  hollowed  out  in  a  semicircle  to  make 
room  for  his  unwieldy  figure. 

This  King  of  Wiirtemberg  was  a  very  able  man,  but  had 
the  reputation  of  being  the  most  worthless  prince  in  Europe. 
He  was  hated  by  his  subjects,  who,  it  is  said,  more  than  once 
tried  to  rid  themselves  of  him.  He  is  now  dead. 

The  marriage  of  Princess  Catherine  and  the  King  of 
"Westphalia  *  took  place  at  the  Tuileries  with  great  splendor. 
The  civil  ceremony  was  performed  in  the  Gallery  of  Diana, 
as  in  the  case  of  the  Princess  of  Baden's  wedding ;  and  on 
Sunday,  the  23d,  at  eight  in  the  morning,  the  religious  mar- 
riage was  solemnized  at  the  Tuileries,  in  presence  of  the 
whole  Court. 

The  Prince  and  Princess  of  Baden  had  also  come  to  Paris. 
She  was  prettier  than  ever.  The  Emperor  did  not  appear  to 
notice  her  particularly.  I  will  speak  of  her  again  presently. 

The  King  and  Queen  of  Holland  arrived  at  the  end  of 
August.  They  seemed  to  be  on  good  terms,  but  still  de- 
pressed on  account  of  their  loss.  The  Queen  was  thin,  and 
suffering  all  the  malaise  of  an  early  stage  of  pregnancy.  She 
had  been  a  very  short  time  in  Paris  when  seeds  of  the  old 
*  Jerome  Bonaparte. 


538  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

distrust  and  disquiet  were  once  more  sown  in  the  mind  of 
her  husband.  Evil  tongues  insinuated  falsehoods  respecting 
the  life  that  the  unhappy  woman  had  led  at  the  Pyrenean 
watering-place.  Her  grief,  the  tears  that  were  still  flowing, 
her  downcast  air,  her  too  evident  ill  health,  failed  to  disarm 
her  enemies.  She  talked  of  the  excursions  she  had  made 
among  the  mountains,  and  of  the  soothing  effect  of  the 
mountain  scenery.  She  told  how  she  had  met  M.  Decazes, 
and  pitied  the  profound  grief  into  which  his  wife's  death  had 
plunged  him.  All  this  she  related  in  the  most  frank  and 
simple  manner,  but  calumny  laid  hold  of  it,  and  the  sus- 
picions of  Louis  were  reawakened.  He  wished,  naturally 
but  selfishly,  to  take  his  wife  and  son  back  to  Holland. 
Mme.  Louis  was  as  submissive  as  he  could  require  her  to  be ; 
but  the  Empress,  alarmed  by  the  declining  state  of  her 
daughter,  insisted  on  a  consultation  of  physicians  being  held. 
The  doctors  were  unanimous  in  pronouncing  the  climate  of 
Holland  unfit  for  a  woman  in  the  Queen's  situation,  whose 
chest  was  already  delicate  ;  and  the  Emperor  settled  the  ques- 
tion by  announcing  that  he  intended  to  keep  his  step-daugh- 
ter and  her  child  with  himself  for  the  present.  The  King 
submitted  sullenly,  and  bitterly  resented  to  his  wife  a  deci- 
sion which  she  had  not  solicited,  but  which,  I  believe,  was  in 
accordance  with  her  wishes.  Discord  once  more  reigned  in 
that  wretched  household ;  and  Queen  Hortense,  profoundly 
offended  this  time  by  the  jealous  suspicions  of  her  husband, 
lost  for  ever  the  interest  which  she  had  recently  felt  in  him, 
and  conceived  a  positive  aversion  toward  him.  "  From  that 
time  forth,"  she  has  often  said  to  me,  "  I  was  fully  aware 
that  my  unhappiness  must  always  be  irremediable.  I  re- 
garded my  hopes  as  entirely  and  irrevocably  ruined.  All 
grandeur  inspired  me  with  horror.  As  for  the  throne,  and 
what  so  many  people  called  my  f  luck,'  I  cursed  them  many 
a  time.  I  was  a  stranger  to  every  enjoyment  of  life.  All 
my  dreams  had  vanished ;  I  was  wellnigh  dead  to  all  that 
was  passing  around  me." 


M.  DE  CHATEAUBRIAND.  539 

About  this  time  the  Academy  lost  two  of  its  most  dis- 
tinguished members :  Le  Brun  the  poet,  who  has  left  some 
beautiful  odes  and  the  reputation  of  great  poetical  talent,  and 
M.  Dureau  de  la  Malle,  the  esteemed  translator  of  Tacitus 
and  the  intimate  friend  of  Delille. 

M.  Delille  lived  peacefully  in  the  enjoyment  of  a  mod- 
erate fortune,  surrounded  by  friends,  popular  in  society,  left 
to  his  repose  and  his  freedom  by  the  Emperor,  who  had 
given  up  the  idea  of  conquering  him.  He  published  certain 
works  from  time  to  time,  and  reaped  the  reward  of  his  natu- 
ral amiability  in  the  favor  with  which  they  were  received. 
His  life  was  indeed  a  peaceful  one,  untroubled  by  any  bitter 
thoughts  or  hostile  opinions.  M.  Delille  was  a  professor  at 
the  College  of  France,  and  received  the  salary  of  a  chair  of 
literature,  but  Le  Gouve  did  its  work  for  him.  This  was 
the  only  boon  which  he  consented  to  accept  from  Bonaparte. 
He  prided  himself  on  preserving  a  faithful  remembrance  of 
Queen  Marie  Antoinette,  whom  h§  called  his  benefactress. 
It  was  known  that  he  was  composing  a  poem  in  honor  of 
her,  the  King,  and  the  emigres,  but  no  one  resented  this  to 
him.  A  Government  which  was  always  anxious  to  efface 
such  memoirs  respected  them  in  Delille,  and  would  not  have 
ventured  to  incur  the  odium  of  persecuting  the  amiable, 
grateful,  and  generally  beloved  old  man. 

The  two  vacant  seats  in  the  Academy  were  much  dis- 
cussed in  the  salons  of  Paris.  M.  de  Chateaubriand  was 
mentioned  for  one  of  them.  The  Emperor  was  angry  with 
him,  and  the  young  writer — who  was  pursuing  a  course 
which  gained  him  celebrity,  procured  him  the  support  of  a 
party,  and  nevertheless  did  not  expose  him  to  any  real  dan- 
ger— kept  up  an  opposition  which  gained  strength  from  the 
fact  that  it  excited  the  Emperor's  anger.  The  French 
Academy,  imbued  at  that  time  with  the  revolutionary  and 
would-be  philosophical  incredulity  that  had  come  into  fash- 
ion in  the  last  century,  opposed  the  choice  of  a  man  who  had 
hoisted  religious  colors  as  the  banner  of  his  genius.  It  was 


540  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

said,  by  those  who  most  frequented  M.  de  Chateaubriand's 
society,  that  the  habits  of  his  life  were  by  no  means  in  har- 
mony with  the  precepts  that  adorned  his  compositions.  Ex- 
cessive pride  was  imputed  to  him.  Women,  captivated  by 
his  talents,  his  peculiar  manner,  his  handsome  face,  and  his 
reputation,  vied  with  each  other  in  admiring  and  petting 
him,  and  he  showed  himself  by  no  means  insensible  to  their 
advances.  His  extreme  vanity,  the  exalted  opinion  of  him- 
self which  he  entertained,  made  us  all  believe  that,  if  the 
Emperor  had  only  coaxed  him  a  little,  he  would  have  suc- 
ceeded in  gaining  him  over  to  his  side,  although,  of  course, 
he  would  have  had  to  pay  the  high  price  at  which  M.  de 
Chateaubriand  himself  would  have  rated  his  partisanship.* 

The  silent  labors  of  the  Corps  Legislatif  were  continued. 
It  ratified  all  the  laws  that  emanated  from  the  Council  of 
State,  and  the  administrative  organization  of  the  power  of  the 
Emperor  was  completed  without  opposition.  It  was  now  cer- 
tain that  he  could  rule  France,  by  the  strength  of  his  own  ge- 
nius and  by  the  proved  ability  of  the  members  of  this  Council 
of  State,  with  an  appearance  of  legality  which  reduced  the 
country  to  silence  and  pleased  his  orderly  mind ;  and,  regard- 
ing the  remains  of  the  Tribunate  as  merely  a  center  of  oppo- 
sition, which,  however  feeble,  might  be  troublesome  to  him, 
he  resolved  to  make  an  end  of  it.  The  Tribunate  had  been 
considerably  lessened  in  number  under  the  Consulate.f  By 
a  senatus  consultum  the  tribunes  were  transferred  to  the 
Corps  Legislatif,  and  the  session  was  immediately  closed. 
The  speeches  delivered  at  the  last  sitting  of  the  Tribunate 
are  remarkable.  It  is  surprising  that  men  should  mutually 

*  He  continued  to  publish  fragments  of  the  "  Itine'raire  "  of  his  journey  in 
the  newspapers,  and  they  were  eagerly  read.  This  was  as  much  a  matter  of 
party  spirit  as  of  taste.  A  small  war  was  thus  waged  against  Bonaparte,  and 
he  resented  it,  as  he  resented  opposition  of  every  sort. 

f  The  Tribunate  instituted  by  the  Constitution  in  the  year  8  was  installed  on 
the  1st  of  January,  1800.  The  number  of  its  members  had  been  reduced  on  the 
4th  of  August,  1802;  and  on  the  19th  of  August,  1810,  it  was  entirely  sup- 
pressed. — P.  R. 


DISSOLUTION  OF  THE  TRIBUNATE.  541 

consent  to  act  such  a  farce,  and  yet  we  had  become  so  much 
accustomed  to  that  sort  of  thing,  that  nobody  noticed  it  par- 
ticularly at  the  time. 

First,  M.  Beranger,  Councilor  of  State,  appeared  with 
certain  of  his  colleagues,  and,  after  having  recapitulated  the 
services  which  the  Tribunate  had  rendered  to  France,  he 
went  on  to  say  that  the  new  decree  was  about  to  confer  on 
the  Corps  Legislatif  a  plenitude  of  importance  which  guar- 
anteed national  rights.  The  President  replied,  on  behalf  of 
the  entire  Tribunate,  that  this  resolution  was  received  with 
respect  and  confidence  by  them  all,  and  that  they  appreci- 
ated its  positive  advantages.  Then  a  tribune  (M.  Carrion- 
Nisas)  moved  that  an  address  should  be  presented  to  the 
Emperor  thanking  him  for  the  evidence  of  esteem  and  re- 
gard which  he  had  deigned  to  offer  to  the  Tribunate ;  and 
the  speaker  added  that  he  believed  himself  to  be  the  inter- 
preter of  the  feelings  of  each  of  his  colleagues,  in  proposing 
to  lay  at  the  foot  of  the  throne,  as  the  last  act  of  an  honor- 
able existence,  an  address  which  should  impress  the  people 
with  the  idea  that  the  tribunes,  whose  attachment  to  the 
monarchy  was  unalterable,  had  received  the  act  of  the  Sen- 
ate without  regret,  and  without  solicitude  for  the  country. 
This  proposition  was  adopted  with  unanimity.  The  Presi- 
dent of  the  Tribunate,  Fabre  de  FAude,  was  named  Senator. 

At  this  time  the  Emperor  organized  the  Cour  des  Comp- 
tes,  and,  his  displeasure  with  M.  Barbe-Marbois  having  passed 
away,  he  recalled  him  and  made  him  President  of  that 
Court. 

In  September  the  Emperor  of  Austria  married  for  the 
second  time.  His  bride  was  his  first  cousin,  the  daughter 
of  the  old  Archduke  Ferdinand  of  Milan.  Shortly  after- 
ward his  brother,  the  Grand  Duke  of  Wiirzburg,  who  is 
now  Grand  Duke  of  Tuscany,  came  to  Paris. 

The  Court  was  increased  from  time  to  time  by  the  ar- 
rival of  a  number  of  great  personages.  Toward  the  end  of 
September  a  sojourn  at  Fontainebleau  was  announced.  On 


542  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

this  occasion  the  greatest  magnificence  was  to  be  displayed ; 
fetes  were  to  take  place  in  honor  of  the  Queen  of  West- 
phalia ;  the  elite  of  the  actors  and  musicians  of  Paris  were  to 
be  brought  down  to  the  palace,  and  the  Court  received  or- 
ders to  appear  in  the  utmost  splendor.  The  Princes  and 
Princesses  of  the  Imperial  family  brought  a  portion  of  their 
households,  and  they,  as  well  as  the  great  dignitaries  and  the 
Ministers  who  were  to  accompany  the  Emperor,  were  to  have 
separate  tables. 

On  the  21st  of  September  Bonaparte  left  Paris  with  the 
Empress,  and  during  the  following  days  the  Queen  of  Hol- 
land, the  Queen  of  Naples,  the  King  and  Queen  of  West- 
phalia, the  Grand  Duke  and  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg,  the 
Princess  Pauline,  Madame  Mere,  the  Grand  Duke  and 
Grand  Duchess  of  Baden,  the  Prince  Primate,  the  Grand 
Duke  of  Wiirzburg,  the  Princes  of  Mecklenburg  and  Saxe- 
Gotha,  M.  de  Talleyrand,  the  Prince  de  1ST eufchdtel,  Maret 
(Secretary  of  State),  the  great  officers  of  the  Imperial  houses, 
several  Ministers  of  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  and  a  number  of 
Marshals,  arrived  at  Fontainebleau.  M.  de  Kemusat,  several 
Chamberlains,  the  Ladies  of  Honor,  the  Ladies-in-Waiting, 
and  the  Women  of  the  Bedchamber  were  included  in  the 
traveling  party.  We  were  all  summoned  by  a  letter  from 
the  Grand  Marshal  Duroc,  which  announced  to  each  that 
she  had  been  selected  by  the  Emperor.  I  had  just  come 
from  Aix-la-Chapelle,  and,  being  comprised  in  the  list,  I  re- 
joined the  Court  and  my  husband  at  Fontainebleau,  after 
the  delay  of  a  few  days  in  Paris  with  my  mother  and  my 
children. 

Marshal  Lannes  had  been  nominated  Colonel-General  of 
the  Swiss  Guard  on  the  20th  of  September. 


CHAPTER   XXVI. 

(1807.) 

The  Power  of  the  Emperor— Resistance  of  the  English— The  Emperor's  Life  at 
Fontainebleau— Plays— Talma— King  Je"rome— The  Princess  of  Baden— The 
Grand  Duchess  of  Berg — Princess  Borghese — Cambace'res — Foreign  Princes — 
Spanish  Affairs— Previsions  of  M.  de  Talleyrand— M.  de  Ke"musat  is  made 
Superintendent  of  Theatres— The  Fortunes  and  the  Difficulties  of  the  Marshals. 

LET  us  suppose  an  individual,  ignorant  of  all  antecedent 
events,  and  suddenly  introduced  to  the  life  of  the  palace  at 
Fontainebleau  at  the  time  of  which  I  am  speaking.  That 
individual,  dazzled  by  the  magnificence  of  this  royal  dwell- 
ing, and  struck  by  the  authoritative  air  of  the  master  and 
the  obsequious  reverence  of  the  great  personages  who  sur- 
rounded him,  would  undoubtedly  have  believed  that  he  be- 
held a  sovereign  peacefully  seated  upon  the  greatest  throne 
in  the  world,  in  virtue  of  the  joint  rights  of  power  and  legiti- 
macy.* 

*  This  sojourn  at  Fontainebleau,  which  lasted  nearly  two  months,  is  one  of 
the  most  interesting  episodes  of  Court  life  under  the  Empire.  The  Emperor 
never  devoted,  I  think,  so  long  a  period  to  that  life.  In  its  pleasures  and  its 
brilliance,  the  Empire  possessed  for  the  first  time  a  real  Court.  Everywhere 
else,  that  which  was  called  so  was  only  a  pretense,  a  parade,  in  which  uniforms 
meant  more  than  persons ;  but  here,  as  in  the  Courts  of  Louis  XIV.  or  Louis 
XV.,  people  lived  together,  met  each  other,  accosted  each  other,  and  talked. 
There  was  an  obligatory  intercourse  between  all  these  human  beings,  and,  not- 
withstanding the  restraint  of  etiquette  and  the  dread  of  the  master,  nature  did 
occasionally  come  to  the  surface  and  reveal  itself.  Interests,  passions,  in- 
trigues, weakness,  and  treasons  came  into  play  here ;  in  a  word,  the  Court  was 
real. 

It  would  not  become  me  to  pronounce  upon  the  ability  with  which  the  au- 
thor has  described  these  shades  of  society,  and  my  duty  as  an  editor  is  restricted 
40 


5M  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

Bonaparte  was  then  king  in  the  eyes  of  all  and  in  his 
own  eyes ;  he  forgot  the  past,  he  did  not  fear  the  future. 
He  walked  with  a  firm  step,  foreseeing  no  obstacles,  or  at 
least  certain  that  he  could  easily  overthrow  any  which  might 
arise.  It  appeared  to  him,  it  appeared  to  us,  that  he  could 
not  fall  except  by  an  event  so  unforeseen,  so  strange,  and 
which  would  produce  so  universal  a  catastrophe,  that  all  the 
interests  of  order  and  tranquillity  were  solemnly  pledged  to 
his  support.  He  was  either  the  master  or  the  friend  of  all 
the  continental  kings.  He  was  allied  to  several  of  them 
either  by  foreign  treaties  or  by  foreign  marriages.  He  had 
made  sure  of  Europe  by  the  partitions  which  he  had  effected. 
He  had  strong  garrisons  upon  its  most  distant  frontiers  to 
insure  the  execution  of  his  will,  and  all  the  resources  of 
France  were  placed  absolutely  in  his  hands.  He  possessed 
an  immense  treasury ;  he  was  in  the  prime  of  life,  admired, 

to  writing  notes  which  shall  be  rather  explanatory  than  laudatory.  The  public 
has,  however,  so  amply  proved  the  esteem  in  which  it  holds  these  Memoirs, 
that  I  shall  be  excused  for  saying  that  my  father  had  anticipated  the  verdict 
of  public  opinion,  and  did  not  hesitate  to  compare  his  ^  mother's  writings  with 
those  of  the  standard  authors.  He  has  thus  recorded  his  opinion  of  her  de- 
scription of  the  Court  at  Fontainebleau : 

"This  chapter,  which  does  not  contain  any  incident,  is  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  in  the  whole  work.  In  the  last  seven  or  eight  chapters  there  is  too 
much  reflection,  and  the  writer  repeats  herself.  If  my  mother  could  have  re- 
vised her  work,  she  would  have  curtailed  and  suppressed  a  great  deal  of  it ; 
nevertheless,  I  am  convinced  that  the  text  ought  to  remain  as  it  is,  and  that  in 
the  author's  conversations  with  herself,  by  the  reawakening  of  her  remembrances, 
her  readers  will  learn  to  know  and  to  esteem  her.  But  this  chapter  on  Fon- 
tainebleau is  worthy  of  Saint-Simon.  In  it  we  find  close  study  and  accurate  por- 
traiture of  persons  and  things,  of  manners,  forms,  and  demeanor.  It  lays  hold  on 
the  mind ;  it  causes  the  reader  to  live  in  the  world  which  it  reproduces  for  him. 
I  know  nothing  in  Saint-Simon  superior  to  the  picture  of  the  Court  at  the  death 
of  the  Grand  Dauphin.  That  is  the  recital  of  one  single  night  at  Versailles, 
and  it  fills  one  quarter  of  a  volume.  Well,  it  seems  to  me  that  in  this  chapter 
on  Fontainebleau  there  is  the  same  sort  of  charm ;  and,  although  the  sojourn 
there  of  Napoleon's  Court  was  not  marked  by  any  distinctive  event  which  may 
be  regarded  as  a  crisis,  such  as  the  death  of  the  Dauphin,  the  vivacity  of  the 
writer's  imagination  and  the  fidelity  of  her  narrative  lend  all  the  effect  of  that 
realistic  prototype  to  her  picture  of  the  Emperor's  Court."— P.  K. 


RESISTANCE  OF  THE  ENGLISH.  545 

feared,  and  scrupulously  obeyed.  Had  lie  not  then  sur- 
mounted every  obstacle  ?  * 

For  all  this,  a  worm  was  gnawing  at  the  vitals  of  his 
glory.  The  French  Revolution  was  not  a  process  by  which 
the  public  mind  was  to  be  led  to  submit  to  arbitrary  power ; 
the  illumination  of  the  age,  the  progress  of  sound  principles, 
the  spread  of  liberty,  were  all  against  him,  and  they  were 
destined  to  overthrow  this  brilliant  edifice  of  authority, 
founded  in  opposition  to  the  march  of  the  human  intellect. 
The  sacred  flame  of  liberty  was  burning  in  England.  Hap- 
pily for  the  welfare  of  nations,  that  sanctuary  was  defended 
by  a  barrier  which  the  armies  of  Bonaparte  could  not  break 
down.  A  few  leagues  of  sea  protected  the  civilization  of  the 
world,  and  saved  it  from  being  forced  to  abandon  the  field 
of  battle  to  one  who  might  not  perhaps  have  utterly  beaten 
it,  but  who  would  have  stifled  it  for  the  space  of  a  whole 
generation. 

The  English  Government,  jealous  of  so  colossal  a  power, 
and,  notwithstanding  the  ill  success  of  so  many  enterprises, 
though  always  conquered,  never  discouraged,  found  an  un- 
failing resource  against  the  Emperor  in  the  national  senti- 
ments. The  pride  and  industry  of  England,  attacked  both 
in  its  position  and  its  interests,  were  equally  irritated,  and 
the  people  consented  eagerly  to  every  sacrifice  which  was  de- 
manded of  them.  Large  sums  were  voted  for  the  augmen- 
tation of  a  naval  service  which,  should  secure  the  blockade  of 
the  entire  continent  of  Europe. 

The  kings  who  were  afraid  of  our  artillery  submitted  to 
the  prohibitive  system  which  we  exacted  of  them,  but  their 
people  suffered.  The  luxuries  of  life,  the  necessities  created 
by  prosperity,  the  innumerable  wants  which  are  the  result 
of  high  civilization,  all  fought  the  battle  of  the  English. 

*  The  Emperor  was  born  on  the  15th  of  August,  1769,  and  was  then  thirty- 
eight  years  old.  We  are  so  dazzled  by  his  success  that  we  forget  his  age ;  we 
ought,  however,  to  remember  when  we  read  his  history  that  he  was  a  man,  and 
at  that  time  a  young  man. — P.  R. 


546  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Murmurs  arose  at  St.  Petersburg,  on  the  Baltic,  in  Holland, 
in  all  the  French  ports ;  and  the  discontent  which  dared  not 
express  itself  took  all  the  deeper  root  in  the  public  mind  that 
it  might  be  long  before  it  could  find  a  voice. 

The  threats  or  reproaches  which  we  were  suddenly  made 
aware  our  Government  was  addressing  to  its  allies  were, 
however,  indications  of  the  true  state  of  things.  We  in 
France  were  in  complete  ignorance  of  all  that  was  passing 
outside  of  us,  without  communications  (at  least  of  an  intel- 
lectual kind)  with  other  nations,  incredulous  of  the  truth  of 
the  articles  written  to  order  in  our  dull  journals ;  but,  never- 
theless, we  were  led  by  the  line  taken  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  Imperial  will  was  balked  by  the  ne- 
cessities of  the  nation.  The  Emperor  had  bitterly  reproached 
his  brother  Louis  with  a  too  feeble  execution  of  his  orders  in 
Holland.  He  now  sent  him  back  to  his  kingdom  with  a 
positive  injunction  that  his  will  was  to  be  scrupulously 
obeyed. 

" Holland," said  the  "Moniteur,"  "since  the  new  mea- 
sures taken  there,  will  no  longer  correspond  with  England. 
English  commerce  must  find  the  whole  continent  closed  to 
it,  and  these  enemies  of  the  nations  must  be  outlawed.  There 
are  peoples  who  know  not  how  to  do  anything  but  complain ; 
they  must  learn  to  suffer  with  fortitude,  to  take  every  means 
of  injuring  the  common  enemy  and  obliging  him  to  recog- 
nize the  principles  which  actuate  all  the  continental  nations. 
If  Holland  had  taken  her  measures  from  the  commencement 
of  the  blockade,  perhaps  England  would  have  already  made 
peace." 

At  another  time  every  effort  was  made  to  stigmatize  what 
was  called  the  invasion  of  continental  liberties.  The  English 
Government  was  compared,  in  its  policy,  to  Marat.  "What 
did  he  ever  do  that  was  more  atrocious  ? "  was  asked.  "  The 
spectacle  of  a  perpetual  war  is  presented  to  the  world.  The 
oligarchical  ringleaders  who  direct  English  policy  will  end, 
as  all  exaggerated  and  infuriated  men  do  end,  by  earning  the 


RESISTANCE  OF  THE  ENGLISH.  547 

opprobrium  of  their  own  country  and  the  hatred  of  other 
nations." 

The  Emperor,  when  dictating  this  and  similar  tirades 
against  oligarchical  governments,  was  using  for  his  own  pur- 
poses the  democratic  idea  which  he  well  knew  existed  in 
the  nation.  When  he  employed  some  of  the  revolutionary 
phrases,  he  believed  that  he  was  carrying  out  the  principles 
of  the  Eevolution.  "Equality" — nothing  but  "Equality" 
— was  the  rallying-cry  between  the  Revolution  and  him. 
He  did  not  fear  its  consequences  for  himself ;  he  knew  that 
he  had  excited  those  desires  which  pervert  the  most  generous 
dispositions ;  he  turned  liberty  aside,  as  I  have  often  said, 
he  bewildered  all  parties,  he  falsified  all  meanings,  he  out- 
raged reason.  The  power  which  his  sword  conferred  upon 
him  he  sustained  by  sophistry,  and  proved  that  it  was  from 
motives  of  sound  wisdom  that  he  deviated  from  the  path  of 
progress  and  set  aside  the  spirit  of  the  time.  He  called  the 
power  of  speech  to  his  aid,  and  perverted  language  to  lead 
us  astray. 

That  which  makes  Bonaparte  one  of  the  most  remark- 
able of  human  beings,  which  places  him  apart,  and  at  the 
head  of  all  those  powerful  men  who  have  been  called  to  rule 
over  their  fellows,  is  that  he  perfectly  knew  and  always  con- 
tended with  his  epoch.  Of  his  own  free  will  he  chose  a 
course  which  was  at  once  difficult  and  contrary  to  the  spirit 
of  his  time.  He  did  not  disguise  this  from  himself;  he 
frequently  said  that  he  alone  had  checked  the  Revolution, 
and  that  after  him  it  would  resume  its  course.  He  allied 
himself  with  the  Revolution  to  oppress  it ;  but  he  presumed 
too  far  upon  his  strength,  and  in  the  end  the  Revolution  re- 
covered its  advantage,  conquered  and  repulsed  him. 

The  English  Government,  alarmed  by  the  fervor  with 
which  the  Czar,  who  was  rather  fascinated  than  convinced, 
had  embraced  the  policy  of  the  Emperor,  closely  attentive  to 
the  troubles  which  were  beginning  to  manifest  themselves 
in  Sweden,  uneasy  at  the  sentiments  which  Denmark  mani- 


548  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  B&MUSAT. 

fested  toward  us,  and  which  must  lead  to  the  closing  of  the 
Sound  against  themselves,  increased  their  armament,  and 
assembled  their  forces  for  the  blockade  of  Copenhagen. 
They  succeeded  in  taking  that  city ;  but  the  Prince  Koyal, 
fortified  by  the  love  of  his  people,  defended  himself  bravely, 
and  fought  even  after  he  had  lost  his  capital,  so  that  the 
English  found  themselves  obliged  to  evacuate  Copenhagen, 
and  to  content  themselves,  there  as  elsewhere,  with  the  gen- 
eral blockade. 

The  Opposition  declared  against  the  expedition,  and  the 
Emperor,  in  his  ignorance  of  the  British  Constitution,  flat- 
tered himself  that  the  Parliamentary  debates  on  this  point 
would  be  useful  to  him.  Little  accustomed  to  opposition, 
he  estimated  that  of  a  political  party  in  England  by  the 
effect  which  would  have  been  produced  in  France  had  the 
same  violence  of  opinion  which  he  remarked  in  the  London 
journals  been  manifested  here,  and  he  believed  the  English 
Government  was  lost  on  the  evidence  of  the  diatribes  of  the 
"  Morning  Chronicle."  These  articles  were  a  welcome  ali- 
ment to  his  own  impatience,  but  his  hopes  always  proved 
vain.  The  Opposition  declaimed,  but  its  remonstrances 
came  to  nothing,  and  the  Government  always  found  means 
to  carry  on  the  necessary  struggle. 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  Emperor's  anger  when  he 
read  the  debates  in  the  English  Parliament,  and  the  violent 
attacks  upon  himself  in  which  the  free  English  press  in- 
dulged. He  took  advantage,  on  his  own  part,  of  the  liberty 
of  the  press  in  England  to  hire  writers  in  London,  who  might 
print  what  he  wanted  with  impunity.  These  duels  of  the 
pen  served  no  purpose.  The  abuse  which  he  dictated  was 
answered  by  abuse  of  him  which  reached  Paris.  All  these 
articles  had  to  be  translated  and  shown  to  him.  Those 
whose  duty  it  was  to  bring  them  under  his  notice  trembled 
as  they  did  so,  so  terrible  was  his  anger,  whether  silent  or 
displayed  in  violent  passion ;  and  ill  indeed  was  the  fortune 
of  any  one  whose  position  in  the  household  brought  him  in 


THE  EMPERORS  LIFE  AT  FONTAINEBLEAU.     549 

contact  with  the  Emperor  immediately  after  he  had  read  the 
English  newspapers.  We  were  always  made  aware  of  the 
state  of  his  temper  on  those  occasions.  The  officials  whose 
business  it  was  to  provide  for  his  amusements  were  much  to 
be  pitied.  At  this  time  what  I  must  really  call  the  "  tor- 
ture "  of  M.  de  Remusat  commenced.  I  shall  have  more  to 
say  of  this  subject  when  I  have  to  describe  our  Court  life  at 
Fontainebleau. 

All  those  persons  who  were  to  accompany  their  Majesties 
were  assembled,  and  informed  of  the  rules  which  they  would 
have  to  observe.  The  different  evenings  of  the  week  were 
to  be  passed  in  the  respective  apartments  of  the  great  per- 
sonages. On  one  evening  the  Emperor  would  receive ;  there 
would  be  music,  and  afterward  cards.  On  two  other  even- 
ings there  would  be  a  play — on  one,  followed  by  a  ball  in 
the  apartment  of  the  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg,  and,  on  the 
other,  by  a  ball  in  the  apartment  of  the  Princess  Borghese. 
On  the  fifth,  there  would  be  a  reception  and  cards  in  the 
apartment  of  the  Empress.  The  Princes  and  Ministers  were 
to  give  dinners,  and  to  invite  all  the  members  of  the  Court 
in  turn.  The  Grand  Marshal  was  to  do  the  same ;  twenty- 
five  covers  were  to  be  laid  at  his  table  every  day.  The  Lady 
of  Honor  was  likewise  to  entertain.  And,  lastly,  there  was 
to  be  a  table  for  all  those  who  had  not  received  a  special 
invitation  elsewhere.  Princes  and  Kings  were  to  dine  with 
the  Emperor  only  when  invited.  He  reserved  to  himself 
the  liberty  of  his  tete-a-tete  dinner  with  his  wife,  and  chose 
whom  he  pleased  when  he  thought  fit  to  depart  from  that 
rule. 

Hunting  took  place  on  fixed  days,  and  the  guests  were 
invited  to  accompany  the  hunt,  either  on  horseback  or  in 
elegant  caleches. 

The  Emperor  took  it  into  his  head  that  the  ladies  should 
have  a  hunting  costume,  and  to  that  the  Empress  agreed 
very  willingly.  The  famous  costumer  Leroy  was  consulted, 
and  a  very  brilliant  uniform  was  arranged.  Each  Princess 


550  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

selected  a  different  color  for  herself  and  her  household.  The 
costume  of  the  Empress  was  amaranth  velvet,  embroidered 
in  gold,  with  a  toque  also  embroidered  in  gold,  and  a  plume 
of  white  feathers.  All  the  Ladies-in-Waiting  wore  amaranth. 
Queen  Hortense  chose  blue  and  silver ;  Mme.  Murat,  pink 
and  silver ;  Princess  Borghese,  lilac  and  silver.  The  dress 
was  a  sort  of  tunic,  or  short  redingote,  in  velvet,  worn  over 
a  gown  of  embroidered  white  satin ;  velvet  boots  to  match 
the  dress,  and  a  toque  with  a  white  plume.  The  Emperor 
and  all  the  gentlemen  wore  green  coats,  with  gold  or  silver 
lace.  These  brilliant  costumes,  worn  either  on  horseback  or 
in  carriages,  and  by  a  numerous  assemblage,  had  a  charming 
effect  in  the  beautiful  forest  of  Fontainebleau. 

The  Emperor  liked  hunting  rather  for  the  exercise  which 
it  forced  him  to  take  than  for  the  pleasure  of  the  chase  itself. 
He  did  not  follow  the  deer  very  carefully,  but,  setting  off  at  a 
gallop,  would  take  the  first  road  that  lay  before  him.  Some- 
times he  forgot  the  object  of  the  hunt  altogether,  and  fol- 
lowed the  winding  paths  of  the  forest,  or  seemed  to  abandon 
himself  to  the  fancy  of  his  horse,  being  plunged  the  while  in 
deep  reverie.  He  rode  well,  but  ungracefully.  He  preferred 
Arab  horses,  because  they  are  so  trained  that  they  stop  on 
the  instant.  Horses  of  this  kind  were  very  carefully  broken 
for  him,  as,  from  his  habit  of  starting  at  full  gallop  with  a 
loose  rein,  he  would  have  been  in  danger  of  falling  had  not 
great  precaution  been  taken.  He  would  go  down  steep  hills 
at  full  speed,  to  the  great  risk  of  those  who  had  to  follow  him 
at  the  same  pace.  He  had  a  few  severe  falls,  but  they  were 
never  alluded  to.  He  would  not  have  liked  any  mention 
of  them. 

He  took  up  for  a  while  a  fancy  for  driving  a  caleche  or  a 
buggy,  and  he  was  a  very  unsafe  coachman,  for  he  took  no 
precaution  in  turning  corners  or  to  avoid  difficult  roads. 
He  was  determined  always  to  conquer  every  obstacle,  and 
would  retreat  before  none.  One  day,  at  Saint  Cloud,  he 
undertook  to  drive  four-in-hand,  and  turned  the  horses, 


THE  EMPERORS  LIFE  AT  FONTAINEBLEAU.     551 

which  he  could  not  manage,  so  awkwardly  through  a  gate- 
way, that  the  carriage  was  upset.  The  Empress  and  some 
other  persons  were  in  the  vehicle  and  were  all  thrown  out ; 
but,  fortunately,  no  serious  accident  occurred,  and  he  himself 
escaped  with  a  sprained  wrist.  After  that  he  gave  up  driv- 
ing, remarking,  with  a  laugh,  that  "  in  even  the  smallest 
things  every  man  should  stick  to  his  own  business." 

Although  he  took  no  great  interest  in  the  success  of  a 
hunt,  he  would  scold  violently  if  the  deer  were  not  taken, 
and  be  very  angry  if  it  were  represented  to  him  that  he  had, 
by  changing  the  course,  misled  the  dogs.  He  was  surprised 
and  impatient  at  the  slightest  non-success. 

He  worked  very  hard  at  Fontainebleau,  as,  indeed,  he  did 
everywhere.  He  rose  at  seven,  held  his  lever,  breakfasted 
alone,  and,  on  the  days  when  there  was  no  hunt,  remained 
in  his  cabinet  or  held  councils  until  five  or  six  o'clock.  The 
Ministers  and  Councilors  of  State  came  from  Paris  as  if  we 
had  been  at  Saint  Cloud.  He  never  considered  distances, 
and  carried  this  to  such  an  extent  that,  having  expressed  an 
intention  to  "  receive  "  on  Sunday,  after  Mass,  as  he  did  at 
Saint  Cloud,  people  had  to  leave  Paris  in  the  night  in  order 
to  reach  Fontainebleau  at  the  prescribed  hour.  The  persons 
who  had  made  this  journey  would  be  placed  in  one  of  the 
galleries  of  the  chateau,  through  which  he  would  walk,  some- 
times without  taking  the  trouble  of  rewarding  them  by  a 
word  or  a  look  for  the  fatigue  and  inconvenience  they  had 
undergone. 

While  he  remained  all  the  morning  in  his  cabinet,  the 
Empress,  elegantly  dressed,  breakfasted  with  her  daughter 
and  her  ladies,  and  afterward  went  into  her  drawing-room 
and  received  visits  from  persons  living  in  the  chateau.  Such 
of  us  as  cared  to  do  so  might  occupy  ourselves  with  needle- 
work, and  this  was  a  great  relief  to  the  fatigue  of  idle  and 
trifling  conversation.  Mme.  Bonaparte  did  not  like  to  be 
alone,  but  she  had  no  taste  for  any  kind  of  occupation.  At 
four  o'clock  we  left  her ;  she  then  gave  herself  up  to  the 


552  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

business  of  her  toilet,  we  to  the  business  of  ours,  and  this  was 
a  momentous  affair.  A  number  of  Parisian  shopkeepers  had 
brought  their  very  best  merchandise  to  Fontainebleau,  and  they 
easily  disposed  of  it  by  presenting  themselves  at  our  rooms. 

Between  five  and  six  o'clock  the  Emperor  would  go  down 
to  his  wife's  apartment,  and  then  go  out  in  a  carriage  alone 
with  her  for  a  drive  before  dinner.  At  six  o'clock  we  dined, 
and  afterward  we  met  in  the  theatre  or  at  the  apartment  of 
the  person  who  was  charged  with  providing  the  especial 
amusement  of  the  particular  evening. 

The  princes,  marshals,  great  officers,  or  chamberlains  who 
had  the  entree,  might  present  themselves  at  the  Empress's 
apartment.  They  knocked  at  the  door,  the  chamberlain  on 
duty  announced  them,  and  the  Emperor  said,  "Let  them 
come  in."  Ladies  would  sit  down  in  silence;  gentlemen 
would  remain  standing  against  the  wall  in  the  order  in  which 
they  entered  the  room.  The  Emperor  would  generally  be 
walking  backward  and  forward,  sometimes  silently  and  deep 
in  thought,  without  taking  any  notice  of  those  around ;  at 
others,  he  would  make  an  opportunity  of  talking,  but  almost 
without  interruption,  for  it  was  always  difficult  to  reply  to 
him,  and  had  become  more  so  than  ever.  He  neither  knew 
how  to  put  people  at  their  ease  nor  cared  to  do  so ;  for  he 
dreaded  the  slightest  appearance  of  familiarity,  and  he  in- 
spired "all  who  were  in  his  presence  with  the  apprehension 
that  some  disparaging  or  unkind  word  would  be  said  to  him 
or  her  before  witnesses. 

The  receptions  did  not  differ  much  from  these  more  pri- 
vate and  privileged  occasions.  All  about  him  suffered  from 
ennui  ;  he  did  so  himself,  and  frequently  complained  of  the 
fact,  resenting  to  others  the  dull  and  constrained  silence 
which  was  in  reality  imposed  by  him.  I  have  heard  him  say : 
"  It  is  a  singular  thing :  I  have  brought  together  a  lot  of  peo- 
ple at  Fontainebleau ;  I  wanted  them  to  amuse  themselves ;  I 
arranged  every  sort  of  pleasure  for  them ;  and  here  they  are 
with  long  faces,  all  looking  dull  and  tired." 


PLATS.  553 

"  That,"  replied  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "  is  because  pleasure 
can  not  be  summoned  by  beat  of  drum,  and  here,  just  as 
when  you  are  with  the  army,  you  always  seem  to  say  to  us 
all,  <  Come,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  forward  !  march ! ' "  The 
Emperor  was  not  annoyed  by  this  speech ;  he  was  in  a  very 
good  humor  at  this  time.  M.  de  Talleyrand  passed  long 
hours  alone  with  him,  and  was  then  free  to  say  anything  he 
chose ;  but,  in  a  great  room  and  among  forty  other  persons, 
M.  de  Talleyrand  was  just  as  silent  as  the  rest. 

Of  the  whole  Court,  the  person  who  was  most  oppressed 
by  the  care  of  the  Emperor's  pleasures  was,  beyond  all  com- 
parison, M.  de  Remusat.  The  fetes  and  the  plays  were  in 
the  department  of  the  Grand  Chamberlain,  and  M.  de  Re- 
musat,  in  his  capacity  as  First  Chamberlain,  had  all  the  re- 
sponsibility and  labor.  That  word  is  perfectly  appropriate, 
for  the  imperious  and  harassing  will  of  Bonaparte  rendered 
this  sort  of  business  exceedingly  troublesome.  It  always 
was,  as  M.  de  Talleyrand  said,  a  case  of  "  amusing  the  Una- 
musable." 

The  Emperor  chose  to  have  two  plays  in  the  week,  and 
that  they  should  always  be  different.  Only  the  actors  of  the 
Comedie  Franchise  performed  in  these  plays,  which  alter- 
nated with  representations  of  Italian  operas.  Nothing  but 
tragedy  was  played — Corneille  frequently,  a  few  of  Racine's 
pieces,  and  Voltaire,  whose  dramatic  works  Bonaparte  did  not 
like,  very  rarely. 

The  Emperor  approved  the  entire  repertory  for  Fontaine- 
bleau,  positively  insisted  that  the  best  actors  of  the  company 
must  perform  there,  and  commanded  that  the  representations 
in  Paris  should  undergo  no  interruption;  all  the  arrange- 
ments were  made  accordingly.  Then,  all  of  a  sudden,  he 
would  upset  the  whole  arrangement,  demand  another  play  or 
another  actor,  and  that  on  the  morning  of  the  day  on  which 
the  piece,  as  previously  set  down,  was  to  be  acted.  He 
would  not  listen  to  any  observation  on  the  subject,  and  some- 
times would  be  quite  angry  about  it ;  and  the  best  that  was 


554:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

to  be  hoped  for  was  that  he  would  say,  with  a  smile  :  "  Bah ! 
take  a  little  trouble,  and  you  will  succeed.  I  wish  it  to  be  so ; 
it  is  your  business  to  find  the  means." 

When  the  Emperor  uttered  that  irrevocable  Je  le  veux, 
the  words  echoed  through  the  whole  palace.  Duroc,  and  es- 
pecially Savary,  pronounced  them  in  the  same  tone  as  him- 
self, and  M.  de  Bemusat  was  obliged  to  repeat  them  to  the 
unfortunate  actors,  who  were  bewildered  and  overtaxed  by 
the  sudden  efforts  of  memory,  or  the  entire  disarrangement 
of  their  studies,  to  which  they  were  subjected.  Then  mes- 
sengers would  be  dispatched  at  full  speed  to  seek  the  neces- 
sary persons  and  "  properties."  The  day  passed  in  a  whirl 
of  petty  agitation — in  the  fear  that  an  accident,  or  an  illness, 
or  some  unforeseen  circumstance  might  prevent  the  execution 
of  the  order ;  and  my  husband,  who  occasionally  came  to  my 
room  for  a  moment's  rest,  would  sigh  at  the  thought  that  a 
reasonable  man  should  be  forced  to  exhaust  his  patience  and 
all  the  efforts  of  his  intellect  in  such  trifles,  which,  however, 
were  of  real  importance  because  of  the  consequences  to  which 
they  might  lead. 

One  would  need  to  have  lived  in  courts  to  realize  how 
small  things  can  become  grave  matters,  and  how  hard  to 
bear  is  the  displeasure  of  the  master,  even  when  its  cause  is 
utterly  insignificant.  Kings  are  in  the  habit  of  displaying 
their  displeasure  before  everybody,  and  it  is  unbearable  to 
receive  a  complaint  or  a  rebuff  in  the  presence  of  a  number 
of  people  who  look  on  it  as  if  they  were  at  a  play.  Bona- 
parte, the  most  arbitrary  of  sovereigns,  never  hesitated  to 
"  scold  "  in  the  harshest  way,  frequently  without  the  slight- 
est reason,  and  would  humiliate  or  threaten  anybody  at  the 
prompting  of  a  whim.  The  fear  which  he  excited  was  in- 
fectious, and  his  harsh  words  resounded  long  and  far. 

"When  with  very  great  trouble  one  had  succeeded  in  sat- 
isfying him,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  he  would  testify 
that  satisfaction.  Silence  was  the  best  one  had  to  expect. 
He  would  go  to  the  play  preoccupied,  irritated  by  reading 


TALMA.  555 

some  English  journal,  or,  perhaps,  only  fatigued  with  the 
day's  hunting,  and  he  would  either  fall  into  reverie  or  go  to 
sleep.  No  applause  was  permitted  in  his  presence,  and  the 
silent  representation  was  exceedingly  dull  and  cold.  The 
Court  grew  intolerably  weary  of  these  eternal  tragedies. 
The  younger  ladies  simply  slept  through  them ;  every  one 
went  away  depressed  and  dissatisfied.  The  Emperor  per- 
ceived this,  was  angry  at  it,  attacked  his  First  Chamberlain, 
blamed  the  actors,  insisted  on  others  being  found,  although 
he  had  the  best,  and  would  command  different  pieces  for  the 
ensuing  days,  which  were  received  in  precisely  the  same 
manner.  It  rarely  happened  otherwise,  and  our  theatrical 
experiences  were,  it  must  be  confessed,  eminently  unpleas- 
ant. Those  days  at  Fontainebleau  were  a  constantly  recur- 
ring source  of  misery  to  me ;  the  frivolity  of  the  thing  itself, 
and  the  importance  of  its  consequences,  rendered  it  a  great 
trial. 

The  Emperor  admired  Talma's  acting ;  he  persuaded 
himself  that  he  liked  it  very  much,  but  I  think  he  rather 
knew  than  felt  that  Talma  was  a  great  actor.  He  had  not 
in  himself  that  which  enables  one  to  take  pleasure  in  the 
representation  of  a  fiction  on  the  stage ;  he  was  deficient  in 
education,  and  his  mind  was  too  rarely  disengaged,  he  was 
too  entirely  occupied  by  his  own  actual  circumstances,  to  be 
able  to  give  his  attention  to  the  development  of  a  feigned 
passion.  He  occasionally  appeared  moved  by  a  scene,  or 
even  by  a  word  pronounced  with  great  effect ;  but  that  emo- 
tion detracted  from  his  pleasure  as  a  whole,  because  he  wanted 
it  to  be  prolonged  in  all  its  strength,  and  he  never  took  those 
secondary  impressions  into  account,  which  are  produced  by 
the  -beauty  of  the  verse  or  the  harmony  which  a  great  actor 
lends  to  his  entire  rdle.  In  general,  he  thought  our  French 
drama  cold,  our  actors  too  measured,  and  he  resented  to 
others  that  he  found  it  impossible  to  be  pleased  with  what 
the  multitude  accepted  as  a  diversion. 

It  was  the  same  with  regard  to  music.    He  had  little 


556  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

feeling  for  the  arts,  but  lie  had  an  intellectual  appreciation 
of  them,  and,  demanding  from  them  more  than  they  could 
give  him,  he  complained  of  not  having  felt  what  his  nature 
did  not  permit  him  to  experience. 

The  first  singers  in  Italy  had  been  attracted  to  the  Em- 
peror's Court.  He  paid  them  largely ;  his  vanity  was  grati- 
fied by  the  power  of  taking  them  away  from  other  sovereigns ; 
but  he  listened  to  their  strains  moodily,  and  seldom  with  any 
interest.  M.  de  Remusat  bethought  himself  of  enlivening 
the  concerts  by  a  sort  of  representation  of  the  pieces  of 
music  that  were  executed  in  the  Emperor's  presence.  These 
concerts  were  sometimes  given  on  the  stage,  and  they  in- 
cluded the  finest  scenes  from  the  Italian  operas.  The  singers 
wore  the  appropriate  costumes,  and  really  acted  ;  the  decora- 
tions represented  the  scene  in  which  the  action  of  the  song 
was  supposed  to  pass.  All  this  was  arranged  and  mounted 
with  the  greatest  care,  but,  like  everything  else,  failed  in  its 
effect.  And  yet  not  completely ;  for  it  must  be  said  that,  if 
so  much  attention  and  pains  were  labor  lost  so  far  as  his 
pleasure  was  concerned,  the  pomp  of  all  these  various  spec- 
tacles and  entertainments  pleased  Bonaparte,  for  it  consorted 
with  his  policy,  and  he  liked  to  display  a  superiority  which 
extended  to  everything  before  the  crowd  of  foreigners  who 
surrounded  him. 

This  same  moody  and  discontented  temper,  which  was 
inseparable  from  him,  cast  a  cloud  over  the  balls  and  recep- 
tions at  Fontainebleau.  At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
the  Court,  all  in  splendid  attire,  would  assemble  in  the  apart- 
ment of  the  Princess  whose  turn  it  was  to  receive  company. 
We  placed  ourselves  in  a  circle,  and  looked  at  each  other 
without  speaking.  Thus  we  awaited  the  arrival  of  their 

JL  O 

Majesties.  The  Empress  came  in  first,  made  the  tour  of  the 
reception-room  with  her  unfailing  grace,  and  then  took  her 
place  and  kept  silence  like  the  rest,  until  the  Emperor  at 
length  appeared.  He  would  seat  himself  by  her  side,  and 
look  on  at  the  dancing  with  a  countenance  so  little  encourag- 


TEE  COURT  AT  FONTAINEBLEAU.  557 

ing  to  gayety,  that  enjoyment  was  out  of  the  question  on 
these  occasions.  Sometimes,  during  a  pause  in  the  dancing, 
he  would  walk  about  the  room,  addressing  some  trifling  re- 
marks to  the  ladies.  These  observations  were,  for  the  most 
part,  jests  about  their  attire,  of  anything  but  a  delicate  kind. 
He  withdrew  very  soon,  and  shortly  afterward  the  party 
would  break  up. 

During  the  sojourn  of  the  Court  at  Fontainebleau,  a 
very  pretty  woman  made  her  appearance,  and  attracted  the 
attention  of  the  Emperor.  She  was  an  Italian.  .  .  .  M.  de 
Talleyrand  had  seen  her  in  Italy,  and  persuaded  the  Emper- 
or to  appoint  her  "  Reader  "  to  the  Empress.  Her  husband 
was  made  Receiver-General.  The  Empress  was  at  first  in- 
dignant at  the  appearance  of  this  fair  lady  on  the  scenes ; 
but  she  promptly  made  up  her  mind  to  lend  herself  with 
complacency  to  what  she  was  powerless  to  oppose,  and  this 
time  she  shut  her  eyes  to  the  state  of  affairs.  The  lady  was 
a  quiet  person,  acquiescent  rather  than  elated ;  she  yielded 
to  her  master  from  a  sort  of  conviction  that  she  ought  not 
to  resist  him.  But  she  made  no  display,  she  gave  herself  no 
airs  in  consequence  of  her  success,  and  she  contrived  to  com- 
bine a  real  attachment  to  Mme.  Bonaparte  with  submission 
to  Bonaparte's  fancy  for  her.  The  result  was  that  the  affair 
was  conducted  without  any  scandal  or  disturbance.  This 
lady  was  certainly  the  handsomest  woman  in  the  Court, 
which  boasted  a  number  of  beauties.  I  have  never  seen 
more  beautiful  eyes,  finer  features,  or  a  more  exquisitely 
harmonious  face.  She  was  tall,  and  had  an  elegant  figure, 
but  she  was  a  little  too  slight.  The  Emperor  never  cared 
very  much  for  her ;  he  told  his  wife  all  about  the  affair  at 
once,  and  made  her  mind  quite  easy  by  his  unreserved  confi- 
dence respecting  this  brief  and  unsentimental  liaison.  The 
lady  was  lodged  in  the  palace  of  Fontainebleau  in  such  a 
manner  as  to  be  within  call  whenever  he  desired  her  pres- 
ence. It  was  whispered  about  that  she  came  down  in  the 
evening  to  his  apartment,  or  he  went  to  hers ;  but  in  the  or- 


558  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

dinary  circle  he  did  not  talk  to  her  more  than  to  any  other 
lady,  and  the  Court  paid  no  great  attention  to  this  affair,  be- 
cause it  was  plainly  unlikely  to  lead  to  any  change.  M.  de 
Talleyrand,  who  had  in  the  first  instance  persuaded  Bona- 
parte to  select  this  Italian  as  a  mistress,  received  his  confi- 
dences concerning  her,  and  that  was  all. 

If  I  were  asked  whether  the  idleness  of  our  Court  life  at 
Fontainebleau  led  to  the  formation  of  liaisons  of  a  similar 
kind  on  the  part  of  the  courtiers,  I  should  hardly  know  how 
to  answer  that  question.  The  Emperor's  service  demanded 
such  entire  subjection,  and  involved  such  close  though  tri- 
fling occupation,  that  the  men  had  not  time  for  gallantry, 
and  the  women  were  too  much  afraid  of  what  Bonaparte 
might  say  of  them  to  yield  without  very  great  precaution. 
In  so  cold,  constrained,  and  conventional  a  society,  in  which 
no  one  would  venture  on  a  word  or  a  movement  more  than 
the  others,  no  coquetry  was  ever  displayed,  and  every  ar- 
rangement was  made  in  silence,  and  with  a  promptitude 
which  eluded  observation.  Another  peculiarity  of  the  time 
which  acted  as  a  safeguard  to  women  was  that  men  took  no 
pains  to  please :  they  merely  asserted  the  pretensions  of  vic- 
tory without  wasting  time  in  the  preliminaries  of  love.  Thus, 
among  the  Emperor's  surroundings,  only  passing  intrigues, 
whose  denoument  both  parties  seemed  anxious  to  hasten  as 
much  as  possible,  took  place.  Besides,  Bonaparte  desired 
that  his  Court  should  be  grave,  and  he  would  not  have  per- 
mitted women  to  assume  the  slightest  ascendancy  in  it.  To 
himself  alone  he  reserved  the  right  to  every  kind  of  liberty. 
He  tolerated  the  misconduct  of  certain  members  of  his  own 
family,  because  he  knew  that  he  was  powerless  to  restrain 
them,  and  that  the  attempt  to  do  so  only  gave  the  facts  ad- 
ditional publicity.  For  the  same  reason,  he  would  have  dis- 
sembled the  anger  he  might  have  felt  had  his  wife  allowed 
herself  any  "  distractions  "  ;  but  at  this  period  she  no  longer 
seemed  disposed  to  do  so.  I  am  absolutely  unacquainted 
with  the  secrets  of  her  private  life,  and  I  always  saw  her  ex- 


KING  JEROME  IN  LOVE.  559 

cluswely  occupied  with  the  difficulties  of  her  own  position, 
and  tremblingly  apprehensive  of  displeasing  her  husband. 
She  was  entirely  devoid  of  coquetry ;  her  manner  was  per- 
fectly modest  and  reserved ;  she  never  spoke  to  men,  except 
to  find  out  what  was  going  on ;  and  her  grand  subject  of 
care  and  dread  was  the  divorce  which  was  always  hanging 
over  her  head.  Lastly,  the  women  of  that  Court  had  great 
need  to  be  on  their  guard  and  to  take  care  what  they  did ;  for, 
whenever  the  Emperor  was  informed  of  anything — and  he 
always  was  informed — he  would  invariably  make  the  husband 
acquainted  with  the  facts  of  the  case.  It  is  true  that  he  in- 
terdicted any  complaint  or  action  in  consequence.  Thus,  we 
all  know  that  he  had  made  S aware  of  certain  adven- 
tures of  his  wife's,  and  so  imperiously  ordered  him  to  dis- 
play no  anger  that  S ,  who  was  always  entirely  submis- 
sive to  him,  consented  to  allow  himself  to  be  deceived,  and 
ended,  partly  through  this  weak  compliance,  and  partly 
through  his  desire  to  think  his  wife  innocent,  by  not  believ- 
ing facts  which  were  of  public  notoriety. 

Mme.  de  X was  at  Fontainebleau,  but  the  Emperor 

never  paid  her  any  attention ;  and,  if  the  rumor  that  the 
former  liaison  between  them  was  temporarily  renewed  had 
any  truth  at  all  in  it,  the  revived  intimacy  must  have  been 
very  transitory,  and  it  did  not  restore  any  of  her  vanished 
importance  to  the  lady. 

"We  had,  however,  during  our  stay  at  Fontainebleau,  the 
spectacle  of  one  really  ardent  love-affair.  Jerome,  as  I  have 
already  said,  had  recently  married  the  Princess  Catherine, 
and  his  young  wife  became  deeply  attached  to  him,  but  very 
shortly  after  their  marriage  he  gave  her  cause  for  jealousy. 
The  young  Princess  of  Baden  was  at  this  time  a  very  fasci- 
nating person,  and  on  very  bad  terms  with  her  husband. 
She  was  coquettish,  frivolous,  gay,  and  clever,  and  she  had 
a  great  success  in  society.  Jerome  fell  in  love  with  her,  and 
his  passion  seemed  to  afford  her  considerable  amusement. 

She  danced  with  him  at  all  the  balls.     The  Princess  Cathe- 
41 


560  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  REMITS  AT. 

rine,  who  was  even  then  too  fat,  did  not  dance,  and  she 
would  remain  seated,  sadly  contemplating  the  gayety  of  the 
two  young  people,  who  passed  and  repassed  before  her,  quite 
indifferent  to  the  pain  they  were  inflicting  on  her.  At  length, 
one  evening,  in  the  midst  of  a  fete,  the  good  understanding 
between  them  being  too  plain  to  be  mistaken,  the  young 
Queen  of  Westphalia  was  observed  to  turn  deadly  pale,  and 
burst  into  tears ;  in  another  minute  she  had  slid  from  her 
chair  and  swooned  completely  away.  The  ball  was  inter- 
rupted ;  she  was  carried  into  another  room,  the  Empress  and 
some  of  the  ladies  hastened  to  her  aid,  and  we  heard  the  Em- 
peror address  a  severe  rebuke  to  his  brother,  after  which  he 
retired.  Jerome,  greatly  frightened,  went  at  once  to  his 
wife,  took  her  upon  his  knee,  and  endeavored  to  restore  her 
to  consciousness  by  his  caresses.  The  Princess,  on  coming 
to  herself,  wept  bitterly,  and  seemed  to  be  unaware  that  a 
number  of  persons  surrounded  her.  I  looked  on  at  this 
scene  in  silence,  deeply  impressed  by  its  strangeness,  by  the 
sight  of  this  Jerome — whom  a  succession  of  circumstances, 
all  entirely  independent  of  any  merit  of  his  own,  had  raised 
to  a  throne — figuring  as  the  object  of  the  passionate  love  of 
a  real  Princess,  with  the  right  to  her  love,  and  also  a  right 
to  neglect  her.  I  can  not  describe  what  I  felt  at  seeing  her 
sitting  upon  his  knees,  her  head  upon  his  shoulder,  and  re- 
ceiving his  kisses,  while  he  called  her  by  her  name,  "  Cathe- 
rine," over  and  over  again,  entreating  her  to  calm  herself, 
and  using  the  familiar  tutoiement.  A  few  minutes  later  the 
young  couple  retired  to  their  own  apartment. 

On  the  following  day  Bonaparte  ordered  his  wife  to 
speak  strongly  to  her  young  niece,  and  I  also  was  instructed 
to  make  her  listen  to  reason.  She  received  me  very  well, 
and  listened  to  me  with  attention.  I  represented  to  her  that 
she  was  compromising  her  future,  and  urged  upon  her  that 
her  duty  and  her  interest  alike  bound  her  to  live  on  proper 
terms  with  the  Prince  of  Baden ;  that  she  was  destined  to 
live  in  other  countries  than  France ;  that  levity  which  might 


TEE  PRINCESS  OF  BADEN.  561 

be  tolerated  in  Paris  would  probably  be  resented  in  Ger- 
many ;  and  that  she  ought  most  carefully  to  avoid  giving 
any  excuse  for  the  spread  of  calumny  against  her.  She  ac- 
knowledged that  she  had  more  than  once  reproached  herself 
for  the  imprudence  of  her  behavior,  but  that  there  really  was 
nothing  in  it  except  the  desire  to  amuse  herself;  and  she 
added  that  she  was  quite  aware  that  all  her  present  impor- 
tance was  due  to  her  being  Princess  of  Baden,  for  she  was  no 
longer  treated  at  the  French  Court  as  she  had  been  in  times 
past.  This  was,  in  fact,  quite  true ;  for  the  Emperor,  who 
had  outlived  his  fancy  for  her,  had  changed  the  whole  cere- 
monial with  respect  to  her,  and,  paying  no  attention  to  the 
rules  which  he  had  himself  laid  down  at  the  time  of  her 
marriage,  no  longer  treated  her  as  his  adopted  daughter,  but 
accorded  her  merely  the  precedence  of  a  Princess  of  the 
Confederation  of  the  Rhine,  which  came  very  far  after  that 
of  the  Queens  and  Princesses  of  the  Imperial  family.  Lastly, 
she  knew  that  she  was  a  cause  of  disturbance,  and  the  young 
Prince,  who  did  not  venture  to  express  his  displeasure,  mani- 
fested it  only  by  his  extreme  dejection.  Our  conversation 
lasted  for  a  long  time,  and  she  was  much  impressed  by  it 
and  by  her  own  reflections.  When  she  dismissed  me,  it  was 
with  an  embrace,  and  saying,  "  You  shall  see  that  you  will 
be  pleased  with  me." 

That  same  evening  there  was  a  ball,  and  the  Princess  ap- 
proached her  husband,  and  spoke  to  him  in  an  affectionate 
manner,  while  toward  all  others  she  adopted  a  reserved  de- 
meanor, which  everybody  observed.  During  the  evening 
she  came  to  me,  and  asked  me,  in  the  sweetest  and  most 
graceful  way,  whether  I  was  pleased  with  her;  and  from 
that  moment,  until  the  end  of  the  sojourn  of  the  Court  at 
Fontainebleau,  not  a  single  disparaging  observation  could 
possibly  be  made  respecting  her.  She  showed  no  reluctance 
to  return  to  Baden  ;  when  there,  she  conducted  herself  well. 
She  has  since  had  children  by  the  Prince,  and  lived  happily 
with  him ;  she  also  won  the  affection  of  his  subjects.  She  is 

sSS 


562  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

now  a  widow,  and  has  only  two  daughters  left ;  but  she  is 
held  in  high  consideration  by  her  brother-in-law,  the  Emper- 
or of  Russia,*  who  has  on  several  occasions  evinced  a  great 
interest  in  her. 

As  for  Jerome,  he  went  shortly  afterward  to  take  posses- 
sion of  his  kingdom  of  Westphalia,  where  his  conduct  must 
have  given  the  Princess  Catherine  cause  more  than  once  to 
shed  tears :  this,  however,  did  not  cure  her  of  her  love  for 
him,  for  since  the  Revolution  of  1814  she  has  never  ceased 
to  share  his  exile,  f 

While  pleasure,  and  especially  etiquette,  reigned  at  Fon- 
tainebleau,  the  poor  Queen  of  Holland  lived  in  the  chateau, 
as  much  apart  as  she  could  from  all ;  suffering  much  from 
her  condition,  grieving  incessantly  for  her  son,  spitting  blood 
at  the  least  exertion,  quite  disconsolate,  and  unable  even  to 
wish  for  anything  except  rest.  At  this  time  she  often  said 
to  me,  with  tears  in  her  eyes :  "  I  hold  by  life  for  my  broth- 
er's sakev  only.  When  I  think  of  him,  I  take  pleasure  in 
our  greatness  ;  but  to  myself  it  is  a  torment."  The  Emperor 
displayed  invariable  esteem  and  affection  for  his  step-daugh- 
ter ;  it  was  always  to  her  that  he  intrusted  the  task  of  con- 
veying to  her  mother  such  hints  as  he  thought  necessary. 
Mme.  Bonaparte  and  her  daughter  were  good  friends,  but 
they  were  too  dissimilar  to  understand  each  other,  and  the 
former  was  conscious  of  a  certain  inferiority,  which  affected 
her  to  some  extent.  And,  then,  Hortense  had  experienced 
such  great  trials  that  she  could  not  deeply  compassionate 
cares  which  seemed  to  her  so  light  in  comparison  with  the 
burden  that  she  herself  had  to  carry.  When  the  Empress 
would  tell  her  of  a  quarrel  with  Bonaparte  about  some  fool- 
ish expense  or  some  passing  fit  of  jealousy,  or  would  talk  of 
her  fear  of  divorce,  her  daughter  would  say,  with  a  melan- 

*  The  Princess  Stephanie  of  Baden  died  in  I860.— P.  R. 

f  The  Princess  Catherine  of  Wiirtemberg,  mother  of  Prince  Napoleon  Je- 
r6me  and  Princess  Mathilde,  died  at  Lausanne  on  the  23d  of  November,  1835. 
— P.  R. 


THE  POOR  QUEEN  OF  HOLLAND.  563 

choly  smile,  "Are  these  things  misfortunes?"  The  two 
undoubtedly  loved,  but  I  do  not  think  they  ever  understood, 
each  other. 

The  Emperor,  who  had,  I  believe,  a  much  greater  regard 
for  Mme.  Louis  than  for  his  brother,  but  who  was,  neverthe- 
less, swayed  to  a  certain  extent  by  the  spirit  of  the  family, 
interfered  in  their  domestic  affairs  with  reluctance  and  cau- 
tion. He  had  consented  to  keep  his  step-daughter  with  him 
until  after  her  confinement,  but  he  always  spoke  in  the  sense 
of  wishing  that  she  should  ultimately  return  to  Holland. 
She  told  him  repeatedly  that  she  would  not  go  back  to  a 
country  in  which  her  child  had  died,  and  where  misery- 
awaited  her.  "My  reputation  is  blasted,"  said  she;  "my 
health  is  destroyed ;  I  expect  no  more  happiness  in  this  life. 
Banish  me  from  your  Court,  if  you  will ;  place  me  in  a  con- 
vent :  I  want  neither  throne  nor  fortune.  Give  my  mother 
peace,  and  Eugene  the  eclat  which  he  deserves,  but  let  me 
live  quietly  and  in  solitude."  When  she  spoke  thus,  she 
succeeded  in  touching  the  Emperor's  f eelings ;  he  consoled 
and  encouraged  her,  promising  her  his  aid  and  support,  and 
advising  her  to  trust  to  time,  but  he  utterly  scouted  the  idea 
of  a  divorce  between  her  and  Louis.  He  was,  no  doubt, 
thinking  of  his  own,  and  felt  that  a  repetition  of  the  same 
incident  in  the  family  would  bring  them  into  ridicule.  Mme. 
Louis  submitted,  and  let  time  pass  by ;  but  she  was  privately 
quite  resolved  that  nothing  should  induce  her  to  renew  a 
union,  at  the  thought  of  which  she  shuddered.  It  did  not 
seem  that  the  King  wished  for  her  return ;  on  the  contrary, 
he  was  embittered  against  his  wife,  loved  her  no  better  than 
she  loved  him,  and  in  Holland,  where  he  wanted  to  pass  for 
a  victim,  openly  accused  her.  Many  people  believed  his 
story:  kings  easily  find  credulous  ears.  One  thing  is  cer- 
tain :  the  husband  and  wife  were  most  unhappy,  but  my  be- 
lief is  that,  with  his  disposition,  Louis  would  have  made 
troubles  for  himself  anywhere,  under  any  circumstances ; 
whereas  Hortense  was  eminently  calculated  for  a  calm  and 


564-  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

happy  domestic  life.  She  did  not  seem  to  know  the  mean- 
ing of  passion ;  her  mind  and  f eelings  were  disposed  toward 
profound  quiet. 

The  Grand  Duchess  of  Berg  applied  herself  to  being  ex- 
tremely agreeable  to  us  all  at  Fontainebleau.  She  could  be 
very  gay  and  pleasant  when  she  was  in  the  humor,  and  she 
could  even  assume  an  air  of  bonhomie.  She  lived  in  the 
ch&teau  at  her  own  expense,  very  luxuriously,  and  kept  a 
sumptuous  table.  She  always  used  gilt  plate,  in  this  out- 
doing the  Emperor,  whose  silver-gilt  services  were  used  on 
state  occasions  only.  She  invited  all  the  dwellers  in  the 
palace  by  turns,  receiving  them  most  graciously,  even  those 
whom  she  did  not  like,  and  appeared  to  be  thinking  of  no- 
thing but  pleasure ;  but,  nevertheless,  she  was  not  wasting 
her  time.  She  frequently  saw  Count  Metternich,  the  Aus- 
trian Ambassador.  He  was  young  and  handsome,  and  he 
appeared  to  admire  the  sister  of  the  Emperor.  From  that 
time  forth,  whether  from  a  spirit  of  coquetry  or  from  a  far- 
sighted  ambition  which  prompted  such  a  measure  of  precau- 
tion, she  began  to  accept  the  homage  of  the  Minister  with 
readiness.  He  was  said  to  be  held  in  high  consideration  and 
to  have  great  influence  at  his  Court,  and  he  might  be  placed, 
by  the  course  of  events,  in  a  position  to  serve  her.  Whether 
she  had  this  idea  beforehand  or  not,  events  justified  it,  and 
Metternich  never  failed  her. 

In  addition  to  this,  she  took  the  influence  of  M.  de  Tal- 
leyrand into  consideration,  and  did  her  best  to  cultivate  him 
while  keeping  up  as  secretly  as  possible  her  relations  with 
Fouche,  who  visited  her  with  extreme  precaution,  in  conse- 
quence of  the  displeasure  with  which  the  Emperor  regarded 
any  intimacy  of  the  kind.  We  observed  her  making  up  to 
M.  de  Talleyrand  in  the  drawing-room  at  Fontainebleau, 
talking  to  him,  laughing  at  his  Ions  mots,  looking  at  him 
when  she  said  anything  remarkable,  and  even  addressing 
such  observations  to  him.  M.  de  Talleyrand  showed  no  re- 
luctance, but  met  her  advances,  and  then  their  interviews 


CONJUGAL  SCENES.  565 

became  more  serious.  Mme.  Murat  did  not  conceal  from 
him  that  the  spectacle  of  her  brothers  seated  on  thrones 
inspired  her  with  envy,  as  she  felt  herself  quite  capable  of 
wielding  a  scepter,  and  she  reproached  him  with  opposing 
this.  M.  de  Talleyrand  objected  that  Murat's  abilities  were 
not  brilliant,  and  made  some  jokes  at  his  expense,  which  were 
not  resented  very  strongly.  The  Princess  delivered  up  her 
husband  to  M.  de  Talleyrand's  sarcasms  readily  enough,  but 
she  urged  that  she  would  not  leave  the  whole  charge  of  rul- 
ing in  Murat's  hands ;  and  she  gradually,  by  certain  seductive 
methods,  led  M.  de  Talleyrand  to  be  less  opposed  to  her 
wishes.  At  the  same  time  she  also  flattered  and  cultivated 
M.  Maret,  who,  in  his  heavy  way,  repeatedly  praised  the 
intelligence  and  ability  of  the  Emperor's  sister  to  her  all- 
powerful  brother. 

Bonaparte  himself  had  a  great  opinion  of  her,  and  he 
found  it  supported  by  a  variety  of  testimony  which  he 
knew  was  not  concerted.  He  began  to  treat  his  sister  with 
greater  consideration,  whereat  Murat,  who  lost  something  by 
what  she  gained,  thought  proper  to  take  offense  and  com- 
plain. Thence  ensued  conjugal  "  scenes,"  in  which  the  hus- 
band insisted  on  resuming  his  right  and  his  rank.  He  bul- 
lied the  Princess,  and  she  was  a  good  deal  frightened ;  but, 
partly  by  adroitness,  partly  by  threats — by  being  now  caress- 
ing, and  again  haughty  and  distant,  by  acting  on  some  occa- 
sions the  submissive  wife,  and  on  others  the  sister  of  the 
master  of  all — she  bewildered  her  husband,  resumed  her 
ascendancy,  and  proved  to  him  that  she  was  serving  his  in- 
terests in  all  she  was  doing.  It  seems  that  quarrels  of  the 
same  kind  occurred  when  she  was  at  Naples,  that  Murat's 
vanity  took  umbrage,  and  that  he  was  deeply  hurt ;  but 
every  one  agrees  that,  if  he  made  mistakes,  it  was  always 
when  he  ceased  to  follow  her  advice. 

I  have  said  that  the  sojourn  of  the  Court  at  Fontaine- 
bleau  was  marked  by  a  brilliant  succession  of  foreign  visitors. 
With  the  Prince  Primate  we  had  very  agreeable  con  versa- 


566  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

tions ;  lie  was  witty,  had  fine  manners,  delighted  in  recalling 
the  days  of  his  youth,  when  he  had  been  acquainted  in  Paris 
with  all  the  men  of  letters  of  the  epoch.  The  Grand  Duke 
of  Wiirzburg,  who  remained  all  the  time  at  Fontainebleau, 
was  very  good-natured,  and  put  every  one  at  ease  with  him. 
He  was  passionately  fond  of  music,  and  had  a  voice  like  that 
of  a  precentor;  but  he  enjoyed  himself  so  much  when  he 
was  allowed  to  take  a  part  in  a'  piece  of  concerted  music 
that  no  one  had  the  heart  to  spoil  his  harmless  pleasure  by 
smiling  at  his  performance. 

Next  to  the  two  whom  I  have  just  mentioned,  the  Princes 
of  Mecklenburg  were  objects  of  special  attention.  They 
were  both  young,  and  very  polite — indeed,  even  obliging — 
to  everybody.  They  were  in  some  awe  of  the  Emperor; 
the  magnificence  of  his  Court  dazzled  them,  and  so  im- 
pressed were  they  by  his  power  and  the  splendor  amid  which 
it  was  displayed  that  they  were  in  a  state  of  perpetual  ad- 
miration, and  paid  court  even  to  the  chamberlains. 

The  Prince  of  Mecklenburg  -  Strelitz,  brother  to  the 
Queen  of  Prussia,  was  rather  deaf,  and  found  it  difficult  to 
communicate  his  ideas;  but  the  Prince  of  Mecklenburg- 
Schwerin,  who  was  also  young  and  very  good-looking,  was 
extremely  affable.  His  object  in  coming  was  to  endeavor  to 
obtain  the  removal  of  the  French  garrisons  from  his  states. 
The  Emperor  kept  him  amused  by  fair  promises ;  he  ex- 
plained his  wishes  to  the  Empress,  and  she  listened  to  him 
with  gracious  patience.  The  unfailing  kindness  that  distin- 
guished Josephine,  her  sweet  face,  her  lovely  figure,  the 
suave  elegance  of  her  person,  were  not  without  their  effect 
on  the  Prince.  "We  saw,  or  believed  we  saw,  that  he  was 
captivated ;  she  laughed,  and  was  amused.  Bonaparte  also 
laughed,  but  he  afterward  took  the  matter  ill.  This  change 
of  his  humor  occurred  on  his  return  from  a  journey  to  Italy, 
which  he  made  at  the  end  of  the  autumn.  The  two  Princes 
were  treated  with  less  cordiality  toward  the  close  of  their 
stay  in  Paris. 


FOREIGN  PRINCES.  567 

I  do  not  think  Bonaparte  felt  any  real  annoyance,  but  he 
did  not  choose  to  be  the  subject  of  any  kind  of  jest.  The 
Prince,  no  doubt,  retained  some  sort  of  feeling  for  the  Em- 
press ;  for  she  told  me  that,  on  the  occasion  of  the  divorce, 
the  Emperor  suggested  to  her  that,  if  she  wished  to  marry 
again,  she  should  select  the  Prince  of  Mecklenburg  as  her 
husband,  and  she  declined.  I  am  not  quite  sure  whether 
she  did  not  tell  me  that  the  Prince  had  written  to  ask  for  her 
hand. 

Such  of  the  Princes  as  were  not  invited  to  the  Emperor's 
table  dined  with  the  Queens,  the  Ministers,  the  Grand  Mar- 
shal, or  the  Lady  of  Honor.  Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld  had 
a  fine  suite  of  rooms,  where  the  foreigners  were  accustomed 
to  assemble.  She  received  them  with  much  grace  and  cor- 
diality, and  time  passed  there  pleasantly. 

How  curious  a  spectacle  is  a  Court !  There  we  see  the 
most  illustrious  personages  of  the  time,  men  of  the  highest 
social  rank;  each  one  of  them  is  supposed  to  be  occupied 
with  important  interests ;  but  the  silence  enforced  by  pru- 
dence and  custom  reduces  all  conversation  to  complete  insig- 
nificance, and  it  frequently  happens  that  princes  and  other 
great  men,  not  daring  to  act  like  men  under  such  circum- 
stances, assume  the  behavior  of  mere  children.  This  reflec- 
tion was  forced  upon  my  mind  even  more  strongly  at  Fon- 
tainebleau  than  elsewhere.  All  these  foreigners  were  aware 
that  they  were  drawn  thither  by  force.  All  were  more  or 
less  vanquished  or  dispossessed ;  they  had  come  to  entreat 
either  favor  or  justice ;  they  knew  that  in  a  corner  of  the 
chateau  their  fate  was  being  decided ;  and  all  of  them,  as- 
suming a  similar  appearance  of  good  spirits  and  entire  free- 
dom of  mind,  followed  the  chase,  and  acquiesced  in  every- 
thing required  of  them.  These  requirements  included  dan- 
cing, playing  at  blind-man's-buff,  and  other  games,  so  that, 
being  thus  employed,  no  one  need  either  listen  or  reply  to 
them.  How  often  have  I  sat  at  Mme.  de  la  Rochefoucauld's 
piano,  playing,  at  her  request,  those  Italian  dances  which 


568  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

our  lovely  Italian  inmate  had  brought  into  fashion !  Princes, 
Electors,  Marshals,  and  chamberlains,  conquerors  and  con- 
quered, nobles  and  plebeians,  passed  before  me,  dancing  in- 
discriminately together ;  all  the  quarterings  of  Germany  con- 
trasting with  the  Revolutionary  swords  or  the  decorated  uni- 
forms of  our  "  illustration  " — an  "  illustration  "  much  more 
real  and  weighty,  at  that  period,  than  that  of  the  ancient 
title-deeds  and  patents  which  the  smoke  of  our  guns  had 
nearly  obliterated.  I  often  reflected  very  seriously  on  the 
events  then  taking  place  before  my  eyes,  but  I  took  good 
care  not  to  confide  these  thoughts  to  any  of  my  companions, 
and  would  not  have  ventured  for  the  world  to  smile  at  either 
them  or  myself.  "  Herein  is  the  wisdom  of  courtiers,"  says 
Sully.  "  It  is  agreed  that,  though  they  all  wear  grotesque 
masks,  none  shall  ever  be  held  to  be  ridiculous  by  the  oth- 
ers !  " 

In  another  place  he  says :  "  A  truly  great  man  knows 
how  to  be  everything  by  turns  and  according  to  circum- 
stances— a  master  or  an  equal,  a  king  or  a  citizen.  He  loses 
nothing  by  thus  accommodating  himself  in  private,  provided 
that  on  other  occasions  he  shows  himself  equally  able  in  po- 
litical and  military  affairs ;  the  courtier  will  never  forget  that 
he  is  in  the  presence  of  his  master." 

But  the  Emperor  was  by  no  means  disposed  to  adopt 
these  axioms,  and,  from  design  as  well  as  from  inclination, 
he  never  relaxed  his  kingly  state.  And,  indeed,  a  usurper 
could,  perhaps,  hardly  do  so  with  impunity. 

When  the  hour  struck  for  us  to  leave  our  childish  games 
in  order  to  present  ourselves  before  him,  the  expression  of 
every  face  became  constrained.  Each  of  us  wore  a  serious 
countenance,  as  we  proceeded  slowly  and  ceremoniously  to 
the  great  apartments.  Hand  in  hand,  we  entered  the  Em- 
press's anteroom.  A  chamberlain  announced  the  names. 
Then,  sooner  or  later,  we  were  received — sometimes  only 
those  who  had  the  entree,  at  other  times  everybody.  We 
silently  fell  into  our  places,  as  I  have  said  before,  and  lis- 


BONAPARTE  ANGRY.  569 

tened  to  the  few  and  vague  phrases  the  Emperor  addressed 
to  each.  Wearied  like  us,  he  soon  called  for  the  card- 
tables,  to  which  we  would  sit  down  for  appearance'  sake,  and 
shortly  after  the  Emperor  would  retire.  Nearly  every  even- 
ing he  sent  for  M.  de  Talleyrand,  with  whom  he  sat  up  far 
into  the  night. 

The  state  of  Europe  at  this  time  was,  doubtless,  the  ordi- 
nary subject  of  their  conversations.  The  expedition  of  the 
English  into  Denmark  had  greatly  angered  the  Emperor. 
He  found  himself  totally  unable  to  assist  his  ally,  and  this, 
added  to  the  destruction  of  the  Danish  fleet  and  the  block- 
ade established  everywhere  by  English  ships,  made  him 
eagerly  seek  every  opportunity  of  harming  them.  He  ex- 
acted with  greater  urgency  than  ever  that  his  allies  should 
devote  themselves  to  carrying  out  his  vengeance.  The  Em- 
peror of  Russia,  who  had  taken  steps  toward  a  general  peace, 
having  been  repulsed  by  the  English  Government,  threw 
himself  thoroughly  into  the  alliance  with  Bonaparte.  On 
the  26th  of  October  he  made  a  declaration,  by  which  he  an- 
nounced that  he  had  broken  off  all  communication  with  Eng- 
land up  to  the  time  when  she  should  enter  into  a  treaty  of 
peace  with  us.  His  ambassador,  Count  Tolstoi,  arrived  at 
Fontainebleau  shortly  afterward ;  he  was  received  with  great 
honor,  and  included  among  the  "  members  of  the  Journey," 
as  it  was  called. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  month  a  rupture  took  place  be- 
tween ourselves  and  Portugal.  The  Prince  Regent  of  that 
kingdom  *  gave  no  support  to  those  continental  prohibitions 
which  so  harassed  the  people.  Bonaparte  grew  angry ;  vio- 
lent paragraphs  against  the  house  of  Braganza  appeared  in 
the  newspapers,  the  ambassadors  were  recalled,  and  our  army 
entered  Spain  in  order  to  march  on  Lisbon.  Junot  was  in 
command.  In  November  the  Prince  Regent,  seeing  he 
could  offer  no  resistance  to  such  an  invasion,  resolved  to 

*  The  Queen,  his  mother,  was  still  living,  but  she  was  insane. 


570  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

emigrate  from  Europe,  and  to  go  and  reign  in  Brazil.  He 
embarked  on  the  29th  of  November. 

The  Spanish  Government  had  taken  good  care  not  to  op- 
pose the  passage  of  the  French  troops  through  its  territories. 
A  great  deal  of  scheming  was  going  on  at  that  time  between 
the  Court  of  Madrid  and  that  of  France.  For  a  long  time 
past  there  had  been  a  close  correspondence  between  the 
Prince  of  the  Peace  and  Murat.  The  Prince,  absolute  mas- 
ter of  his  King's  mind,  and  the  implacable  enemy  of  the  In- 
fante Don  Ferdinand,  heir  to  the  throne,  had  devoted  him- 
self to  Bonaparte  and  served  him  zealously.  He  repeatedly 
promised  Murat  to  satisfy  him  on  every  point,  and  the  latter, 
in  return,  was  instructed  to  promise  him  a  crown  (the  "  king- 
dom of  the  Algarves"),  and  efficient  support  from  us.  A 
crowd  of  schemers,  both  French  and  Spanish,  were  mixed 
up  in  all  this.  They  deceived  Bonaparte  and  Murat  as  to 
the  true  spirit  of  Spain,  and  they  most  carefully  concealed 
that  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  was  hated  throughout  the  king- 
dom. Having  gained  over  this  Minister,  we  fancied  our- 
selves masters  of  the  country,  and  we  fell  willfully  into 
many  errors  for  which  we  have  since  had  to  pay  very  dearly. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  was  not  always  consulted  or  believed 
on  these  points.  Better  informed  than  Murat,  he  often 
spoke  to  the  Emperor  of  the  true  state  of  the  case,  but  he 
was  suspected  of  being  jealous  of  Murat.  The  latter  assert- 
ed that  it  was  to  injure  him  that  Talleyrand  threw  a  doubt 
upon  the  success  for  which  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  made 
himself  answerable,  and  Bonaparte  allowed  himself  to  be 
deceived.  It  has  been  said  that  the  Prince  of  the  Peace 
made  enormous  presents  to  Murat ;  the  latter  flattered  him- 
self that,  after  betraying  the  Spanish  Minister,  and  by  his 
means  causing  a  rupture  between  the  King  of  Spain  and  his 
son,  and  finally  bringing  about  the  wished-for  revolution,  he 
would  have  the  throne  of  Spain  as  his  reward ;  and,  dazzled 
by  this  prospect,  he  would  not  permit  himself  to  doubt  the 
truth  of  all  the  flattery  that  was  lavished  upon  him. 


CONSPIRACY  AGAINST  THE  KING  OF  SPAIN.   571 

It  happened  that  a  conspiracy  was  suddenly  formed  at 
Madrid  against  the  King ;  Prince  Ferdinand  was  accused  in 
the  reports  that  were  made  to  King  Charles,  and  whether 
there  was  truth  in  the  matter,  or  it  was  only  a  wretched  in- 
trigue against  the  life  of  the  young  Prince,  the  charge  was 
published  widely.  The  Kong  of  Spain,  having  caused  his 
son  to  be  put  on  his  trial  before  a  tribunal,  suffered  himself 
to  be  disarmed  by  the  letters  which  fear  dictated  to  the  In- 
fante— letters  in  which  he  acknowledged  his  crime,  real  or 
pretended — and  the  Court  was  in  a  deplorable  state  of  tur- 
moil. The  King's  weakness  was  extreme;  he  was  infatu- 
ated with  his  Minister,  who  ruled  over  the  Queen  with  all 
the  authority  of  a  master  and  former  lover.  The  Queen  de- 
tested her  son,  to  whom  the  Spanish  nation  was  attached  in 
consequence  of  the  hatred  inspired  by  the  Prince  of  the 
Peace.  There  was  in  this  situation  sufficient  to  flatter  the 
Emperor's  hopes.  If  we  add  the  state  of  Spain  itself,  the 
political  incapacity  of  the  effete  nobility,  the  ignorance  of 
the  people,  the  influence  of  the  clergy,  the  prevalence  of 
superstition,  the  miserable  state  of  the  finances,  the  influ- 
ence which  the  English  Government  was  trying  to  gain,  and 
the  occupation  of  Portugal  by  the  French,  it  is  plain  that 
such  a  condition  of  things  threatened  revolution. 

I  had  often  heard  M.  de  Talleyrand  talking  to  M.  de  Ke- 
mnsat  of  the  situation  of  Spain.  Once,  when  he  was  con- 
versing with  us  about  the  establishment  of  Bonaparte's  dy- 
nasty, he  said,  "  A  Prince  of  the  house  of  Bourbon  is  but  a 
bad  neighbor  for  him,  and  I  do  not  think  he  will  be  able  to 
retain  him."  But  at  this  date,  in  1807,  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
thoroughly  well  informed  as  to  the  real  disposition  of  Spain, 
was  of  opinion  that,  far  from  intriguing  by  means  of  a  man 
of  so  little  capacity  and  so  ill  esteemed  as  the  Prince  of  the 
Peace,  the  way  to  propitiate  the  nation  was  by  procuring  his 
dismissal,  and,  if  the  King  refused  this,  by  declaring  war, 
taking  part  with  the  people  against  him,  and,  according  to 
events,  either  dethroning  all  the  Bourbon  family  or  making 


572  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

a  compromise  in  Bonaparte's  interest  by  marrying  Prince 
Ferdinand  to  a  lady  of  the  Imperial  house.  It  was  toward 
this  latter  plan  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  most  inclined, 
and  he  predicted  even  then  to  the  Emperor  that  any  other 
line  of  conduct  would  involve  him  in  difficulties. 

One  of  the  greatest  defects  of  Bonaparte — I  do  not  know 
if  I  have  already  mentioned  it — was  to  jumble  all  men  to- 
gether on  the  level  of  his  own  views,  ignoring  the  differ- 
ences in  character  which  manners  and  customs  produce.  He 
looked  upon  the  Spaniards  as  he  looked  upon  any  other  na- 
tion. He  knew  that  in  France  the  progress  of  skepticism 
had  led  to  indifference  toward  the  priests,  and  he  persuaded 
himself  that,  by  holding  forth  on  the  other  side  of  the  Pyre- 
nees in  the  philosophic  language  which  had  preceded  the 
French  Kevolution,  he  would  induce  the  inhabitants  of  Spain 
to  join  the  movement  which  had  carried  away  the  French. 
"  When  I  come,"  said  he,  u  with  the  words  liberty,  deliver- 
ance from  superstition,  destruction  of  the  nobility,  inscribed 
upon  my  banner,  I  shall  be  received  as  I  was  in  Italy,  and 
all  truly  national  classes  will  be  with  me.  I  shall  rouse  a 
once  generous  people  from  their  inertia;  I  shall  develop 
them  in  industry  which  will  increase  their  wealth,  and  you 
will  see  that  I  shall  be  looked  upon  as  the  liberator  of  Spain." 

Murat  carried  some  of  this  talk  to  the  Prince  of  the 
Peace,  who  did  not  fail  to  assure  him  that  such  results  were, 
in  fact,  highly  probable.  M.  de  Talleyrand's  warnings  were 
vain ;  they  would  not  listen  to  him.  This  was  the  first  check 
to  his  influence,  and  it  shook  it  at  first  imperceptibly,  but 
his  enemies  took  advantage  of  it.  M.  Maret  adopted  the 
tone  of  Murat,  finding  that  it  pleased  the  Emperor.  The 
Minister  for  Foreign  Affairs,  humiliated  at  being  reduced  to 
functions  of  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  took  the  best  part  from 
him,  thought  proper  to  adopt  and  hold  a  different  opinion 
from  his.  The  Emperor,  thus  circumvented,  allowed  him- 
self to  be  deceived,  and  a  few  months  later  embarked  in  this 
perfidious  and  deplorable  enterprise. 


M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.  573 

While  we  were  at  Fontainebleau,  I  saw  a  great  deal  of 
M.  de  Talleyrand.  He  often  came  to  my  apartment,  and 
seemed  to  be  amused  by  my  observations  about  our  Court ; 
he  also  gave  me  his  own  opinions,  which  were  entertaining. 
Sometimes,  indeed,  our  conversations  took  a  serious  turn. 
He  would  come  in  wearied  or  even  displeased  with  the  Em- 
peror, and  would  then  dwell  upon  the  more  or  less  hidden 
vices  of  his  character ;  and,  thus  enlightening  me  with  truly 
funereal  gleams,  he  fixed  my  as  yet  unsettled  opinions,  and 
caused  me  much  sincere  concern. 

One  evening,  when  more  communicative  than  usual,  he 
told  me  some  of  the  anecdotes  which  I  have  related  in  these 
pages ;  and,  as  he  was  insisting  strongly  on  what  he  called 
the  knavery  of  our  master,  representing  him  as  incapable  of 
a  single  generous  sentiment,  he  was  astonished  to  observe 
that,  as  I  listened,  I  was  weeping  silently.  "  What  is  it  ? " 
he  exclaimed.  "What  is  the  matter  with  you?"  "The 
matter  is,"  I  replied,  "  that  you  make  me  really  wretched. 
You  politicians  do  not  want  to  feel  any  affection  for  those 
you  serve.  As  for  me,  a  poor  woman,  how  do  you  suppose 
I  can  endure  the  disgust  your  stories  inspire,  and  what  will 
become  of  me  if  I  must  remain  where  I  am  without  being 
able  to  retain  a  single  illusion  ?  " 

"  Child  that  you  are,"  replied  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "  must 
you  always  want  to  put  your  heart  into  all  you  do  ?  Take 
my  advice :  do  not  try  to  feel  any  affection  for  this  man,  but 
rest  assured  that,  with  all  his  faults,  he  is  at  present  necessary 
to  France.  He  knows  how  to  uphold  the  country,  and  each 
of  us  ought  to  do  his  best  to  aid  him.  However,"  added  he, 
"  if  he  listens  to  the  sage  advice  he  is  receiving  at  present,  I 
will  not  answer  for  anything.  He  is  now  embarked  in  a 
pitiable  intrigue.  Murat  wants  to  be  King  of  Spain  ;  they 
are  cajoling  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  and  want  to  gain  him 
over,  as  if  he  had  any  importance  in  Spain !  It  is  fine  policy 
for  the  Emperor  to  arrive  in  a  country  with  the  reputation 
of  a  close  alliance  with  a  detested  minister !  I  know  well 


574  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

enough  that  he  deceives  that  minister,  and  will  throw  him 
over  when  he  perceives  that  he  counts  for  nothing ;  but  he 
might  have  spared  himself  this  despicable  perfidy. 

"The  Emperor  will  not  see  that  he  was  called  by  his 
destiny  to  be  everywhere  and  always  the  man  of  the  nations, 
the  founder  of  useful  and  possible  innovations.  To  restore 
religion,  morality,  and  order  to  France ;  to  applaud  the  civili- 
zation of  England  while  restraining  her  policy ;  to  strengthen 
his  frontiers  by  the  Confederation  of  the  Rhine ;  to  make 
Italy  a  kingdom  independent  both  of  Austria  and  himself ; 
to  keep  the  Czar  shut  up  at  home,  by  creating  the  natural 
barrier  which  Poland  offers — these  are  what  ought  to  have 
been  the  Emperor's  designs,  and  it  was  to  these  that  each  of 
my  treaties  was  leading  him.  But  ambition,  anger,  pride, 
and  the  fools  to  whom  he  listens,  often  mislead  him.  He 
suspects  me  whenever  I  speak  to  him  of  '  moderation ' ;  and, 
if  ever  he  ceases  to  trust  me,  you  will  see  he  will  compromise 
both  himself  and  us  by  imprudence  and  folly.  Nevertheless, 
I  shall  watch  over  him  to  the  end.  I  have  associated  myself 
with  the  creation  of  his  Empire ;  I  should  like  it  to  hold  to- 
gether as  my  last  work ;  and,  so  long  as  I  can  see  my  way  to 
the  success  of  my  plan,  I  will  not  renounce  it." 

The  confidence  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  reposed  in  me 
pleased  me  very  much.  He  soon  saw  how  well  founded  it 
was,  and  that,  both  by  taste  and  by  habit,  I  brought  perfect 
trustworthiness  to  our  friendly  intercourse.  With  me  he  en- 
joyed the  rare  pleasure  of  being  able  to  speak  freely,  to  give 
vent  to  his  feelings  without  any  misgivings,  and  this  just 
when  he  felt  inclined ;  for  I  never  sought  his  confidences, 
and  I  always  stopped  where  he  pleased.  As  he  was  endowed 
with  great  tact,  he  quickly  discerned  my  reserve  and  discre- 
tion, and  they  formed  a  new  link  between  us.  When  his 
business  or  our  duties  gave  us  a  little  leisure,  he  would  come 
to  my  rooms,  where  we  three  passed  a  good  deal  of  time  to- 
gether. In  proportion  as  M.  de  Talleyrand  grew  more  friend- 
ly toward  me,  I  felt  more  at  my  ease  with  him.  I  resumed 


AN  AGREEABLE  PROSPECT.  575 

the  manners  natural  to  my  disposition,  the  little  prejudice  of 
which  I  have  spoken  melted  away,  and  I  gave  myself  up  to 
a  pleasure  all  the  greater  to  me  that  it  was  to  be  found  with- 
in the  walls  of  a  palace  where  solicitude,  fear,  and  mediocrity 
hindered  all  real  companionship  between  its  inmates. 

This  intimacy,  moreover,  became  very  useful  to  us.  M . 
de  Talleyrand,  as  I  have  said,  talked  to  the  Emperor  about 
us,  and  convinced  him  that  we  were  well  qualified  to  keep 
a  great  house,  and  to  entertain  the  foreigners  who  would 
undoubtedly  frequent  Paris  in  great  numbers  thenceforth. 
Upon  this  the  Emperor  determined  to  give  us  the  means  of 
establishing  ourselves  in  Paris  in  handsome  style.  He  in- 
creased M.  de  Remusat's  salary  on  the  condition  that,  on  his 
return  to  Paris,  he  should  set  up  a  house ;  he  appointed  him 
superintendent  of  the  Imperial  theatres.  M.  de  Talleyrand 
was  commissioned  to  announce  these  favors  to  us,  and  I  was 
very  happy  to  owe  them  to  him.  This  moment  was  the  cul- 
minating point  of  our  position,  for  it  opened  to  us  an  agree- 
able prospect  of  ease  and  many  opportunities  of  amusement. 
We  received  several  congratulations,  and  we  experienced  the 
greatest,  the  only  pleasure  of  a  life  passed  at  Court — I  mean 
that  of  becoming  important. 

In  the  midst  of  all  these  things  the  Emperor  worked  in- 
cessantly, and  issued  decrees  almost  daily.     Some  of  these- 
were  of  great  utility.     For  example,  he  improved  the  public 
offices  in  the  departments,  increased  the  salaries  of  the  cure's,, 
and  reestablished  the  Sisters  of  Charity.    He  caused  a  sena-- 
tus  consultum  to  declare  the  judges  irremovable  at  the  end  of 
five  years.     He  also  took  care  to  encourage  talent,  especially 
when  his  own  glory  was  the  aim  of  its  efforts.     The  "  Tri- 
omphe  de  Trajan  "  was  given  at  the  Paris  Opera.     The  poem 
was  by  Esmenard,  and  both  he  and  the  composer  received; 
presents.     The  work  admitted  of  significant  applications. 
Trajan  was  represented  burning  papers  that  contained  the 
secret  of  a  conspiracy  with  his  own  hand.     This  recalled 
what  Bonaparte  had  done  at  Berlin.     The  triumph  of  Trajan 


576  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

was  represented  with  magnificent  pomp.  The  decorations 
were  superb  ;  the  conqueror  appeared  in  a  chariot  drawn  by 
four  white  horses.  All  Paris  flocked  to  the  spectacle ;  the 
applause  was  unstinted,  and  charmed  the  Emperor.  Soon 
afterward  "La  Yestale,"  the  libretto  by  Mme.  Jouy,  the 
music  by  Spontini,  was  performed.  This  work,  which  is 
good  as  a  poem,  and  remarkable  as  a  musical  composition, 
also  included  a  "  triumph,"  which,  was  much  applauded,  and 
the  authors  received  a  liberal  recompense. 

About  this  time  the  Emperor  appointed  M.  de  Caulain- 
court  ambassador  to  St.  Petersburg.  He  had  great  trouble 
in  inducing  him  to  accept  this  mission ;  M.  de  Caulaincourt 
was  very  reluctant  to  part  from  a  person  whom  he  loved,  and 
he  refused.  Bonaparte  at  length,  by  dint  of  flattering  and 
affectionate  persuasions,  brought  him  to  consent,  promising 
that  his  brilliant  exile  should  not  be  prolonged  beyond  two 
years.  An  immense  sum  was  granted  to  the  ambassador  for 
the  expenses  of  his  establishment,  and  his  salary  was  fixed  at 
from  seven  to  eight  hundred  thousand  francs.  The  Em- 
peror charged  him  to  eclipse  all  the  other  ambassadors  in 
splendor.  On  his  arrival  at  St.  Petersburg,  M.  de  Caulain- 
court found  himself  at  first  in  an  embarrassing  position. 
The  crime  of  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien  had  left  a 
stain  upon  him.  The  Empress-Mother  would  not  see  him  ; 
a  great  number  of  ladies  refused  to  receive  him.  The  Czar 
received  him  graciously,  and  soon  conceived  a  liking  for  him, 
which  grew  into  friendship ;  and  then  the  great  world,  fol- 
lowing his  example,  treated  the  ambassador  with  less  severity. 
When  the  Emperor  learned  that  a  mere  memory  of  this  kind 
had  affected  the  position  of  his  ambassador,  he  was  aston- 
ished. "  What ! "  said  he,  "  do  they  remember  that  old 
story  ? "  He  made  use  of  the  same  expression  every  time 
he  found  that  the  circumstance  was  not  forgotten,  which  in- 
deed was  frequently ;  and  he  would  add :  "  What  childish- 
ness !  Nevertheless,  what  is  done,  is  done." 

Prince  Eugene  was  Arch-Chancellor  of  State.    M.  de 


DIFFICULTIES  OF  THE  MARSHALS.  57? 

Talleyrand  had  to  replace  the  Prince  in  the  discharge  of  the 
functions  attached  to  that  post ;  BO  that  the  former  united  a 
number  of  dignities  in  his  own  person.  The  Emperor  also 
began  to  settle  great  revenues  on  his  marshals  and  generals, 
and  to  found  those  fortunes  which  seemed  immense,  and 
which  were  destined  to  disappear  with  himself.  A  man 
would  find  himself  endowed  with  a  considerable  revenue, 
perhaps  declared  proprietor  of  a  vast  number  of  leagues  of 
territory  in  Poland,  Hanover,  or  Westphalia.  But  there 
were  great  difficulties  about  realizing  the  revenues.  The 
conquered  countries  gave  them  up  reluctantly,  and  the  agents 
sent  to  collect  them  found  themselves  in  an  embarrassing  po- 
sition. Transactions  and  concessions  became  inevitable;  a 
portion  of  the  promised  sums  only  could  be  had.  Neverthe- 
less, the  desire  of  pleasing  the  Emperor,  the  taste  for  luxury, 
an  imprudent  confidence  in  the  future,  induced  these  men  to 
place  their  expenditure  on  the  footing  of  the  presumed  in- 
come which  they  expected  to  receive.  Debts  accumulated, 
embarrassments  cropped  up,  in  the  midst  of  this  seeming 
opulence;  the  public,  beholding  extreme  luxury,  took  im- 
mense fortunes  for  granted ;  and  yet  nothing  real,  nothing 
secure,  was  at  the  bottom  of  all  this. 

"We  have  seen  most  of  the  Marshals  coming  to  the  Em- 
peror, when  pressed  by  their  creditors,  to  solicit  aid,  which 
he  granted  according  to  his  fancy,  or  the  interests  to  be 
served  by  binding  certain  persons  to  himself.  These  de- 
mands became  excessive,  and  perhaps  the  necessity  for  sat- 
isfying them  counted  for  much  among  the  motives  of  the 
subsequent  wars.  Marshal  Ney  bought  a  house;  its  pur- 
chase and  the  sums  expended  upon  it  cost  him  more  than  a 
million,  and  he  has  since  complained  bitterly  of  the  difficul- 
ties into  which  this  purchase  threw  him.  Marshal  Davoust 
was  in  the  same  case.  The  Emperor  prescribed  to  each  of 
his  marshals  the  purchase  of  a  house,  which  involved  a  great 
establishment  and  large  expenditure  in  furniture.  Kich 
stuffs  and  precious  objects  of  all  kinds  adorned  these  dwell- 


5T8  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

ings;  splendid  services  of  plate  glittered  on  the  Marshals' 
tables.  Their  wives  wore  valuable  jewels ;  their  equipages 
and  dress  cost  great  sums.  This  display  pleased  Bonaparte, 
satisfied  the  shopkeepers,  dazzled  everybody,  and,  by  remov- 
ing individuals  from  their  proper  sphere,  augmented  their 
dependence  on  the  Emperor — in  fact,  perfectly  carried  out 
his  intentions. 

During  this  time  the  old  nobility  of  France  lived  sim- 
ply, collecting  its  ruins  together,  finding  itself  under  no 
particular  obligations,  boasting  of  its  poverty  rather  than 
complaining,  but  in  reality  recovering  its  estates  by  de- 
grees, and  reamassing  those  fortunes  which  at  the  present 
day  it  enjoys.  The  confiscations  of  the  National  Convention 
were  not  always  a  misfortune  for  the  French  nobility,  espe- 
cially in  cases  where  the  lands  were  not  sold.  Before  the 
Revolution  that  class  was  heavily  in  debt,  for  extravagance 
was  one  of  the  luxuries  of  our  former  grands  seigneurs. 
The  emigration  and  the  laws  of  1T93,  by  depriving  them  of 
their  estates,  set  them  free  from  their  creditors,  and  from 
a  certain  portion  of  the  charges  that  weighed  upon  great 
houses ;  and,  when  they  recovered  their  property,  they  prof- 
ited by  that  liberation,  which,  in  truth,  they  had  bought  at  a 
high  price.  I  remember  that  M.  Gaudin,  Minister  of  Fi- 
nance, related  once  before  me  how  the  Emperor  had  asked 
him  which  was  the  most  heavily  taxed  class  in  France,  and 
he  had  answered  that  it  was  still  that  of  the  old  nobility. 
Bonaparte  seemed  uneasy  at  this,  and  remarked,  "  But  we 
must  take  order  with  that." 

Under  the  Empire  a  certain  number  of  tolerably  large 
fortunes  were  made;  several  persons,  military  men  espe- 
cially, who  had  nothing  formerly,  found  themselves  in  pos- 
session of  ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty  thousand  livres  per  annum, 
because,  in  proportion  as  they  were  remote  from  the  observa- 
tion of  the  Emperor,  they  could  live  according  to  their  own 
fancy,  and  expend  their  income  with  order  and  economy. 
Of  those  immense  fortunes  with  which  the  grandees  of 


GENERAL  NANSOUTY.  579 

Bonaparte's  Court  were  so  gratuitously  accredited,  but  little 
remains ;  and  on  this  point,  as  on  many  others,  the  party 
who,  on  the  return  of  the  King,  thought  that  the  state 
might  be  enriched  by  seizing  upon  the  treasures  supposed  to 
be  amassed  under  the  Empire,  advised  an  arbitrary  and  vex- 
atious measure  which  led  to  no  result. 

At  this  period  my  family  had  a  share  in  the  gifts  of  the 
Emperor.  My  brother-in-law,  General  Nansouty,  was  given 
the  Grand  Cross  of  the  Legion  of  Honor.  He  had  been 
First  Chamberlain  to  the  Empress,  and  was  made  First 
Equerry,  replacing  M.  de  Caulaincourt  in  his  absence.  He 
received  a  grant  of  thirty  thousand  francs  in  Hanover,  and 
one  hundred  thousand  francs  for  the  purchase  of  a  house, 
which  might,  if  he  chose,  be  of  greater  value,  but  which 
became  inalienable  by  the  fact  of  this  grant.  The  amount 
went  toward  its  price. 


CHAPTEE  XXVII. 

(1807-1808.) 

Projects  of  Divorce. 

I  THINK  it  well  to  devote  a  separate  chapter  to  the  events 
which  were  taking  place  at  Fontainebleau  in  connection 
with  the  Emperor's  divorce  at  this  time.  Although  Bona- 
parte had  not  spoken  to  his  wife  on  the  subject  for  some 
years,  except  on  occasions  when  he  had  some  quarrel  with 
her,  and  those  occasions  had  become  exceedingly  rare  in 
consequence  of  the  amiability  and  self-control  of  the  Em- 
press, it  is  nevertheless  probable  that  he  never  entirely  lost 
sight  of  the  idea.  The  death  of  the  eldest  son  of  Louis  had 
deeply  impressed  him.  His  victories,  while  increasing  his 
power,  had  also  expanded  his  ideas  of  greatness;  and  his 
policy,  as  well  as  his  vanity,  was  concerned  in  an  alliance 
with  a  European  sovereign.  The  rumor  was  at  first  spread 
that  Napoleon  had  cast  his  eyes  on  the  daughter  of  the  King 
of  Saxony;  but  an  alliance  with  that  Princess  would  not 
have  procured  him  any  valuable  support  for  his  continental 
authority.  The  King  of  Saxony  reigned  only  because  France 
authorized  him  to  reign.  Besides  this,  his  daughter  was  now 
at  least  thirty  years  of  age,  and  by  no  means  handsome. 
Bonaparte,  on  his  return  from  Tilsit,  spoke  of  her  to  his 
wife  in  a  manner  which  set  Josephine's  mind  completely  at 

e. 

The  conferences  at  Tilsit  very  reasonably  inflated  Napo- 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  581 

Icon's  pride.  The  admiration  which  the  young  Czar  felt  for 
him,  the  assent  which  he  yielded  to  certain  of  his  projects, 
especially  to  the  dismemberment  of  Spain,  the  complaisance 
of  his  new  ally  with  regard  to  his  wishes,  all  combined  to 
lead  Napoleon  to  form  designs  of  a  closer  alliance.  No 
doubt  he  spoke  openly  of  these  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  but  I 
do  not  think  that  anything  was  said  about  them  to  the  Czar ; 
the  whole  matter  was  ref erred  to  a  future,  more  or  less  near, 
according  to  circumstances. 

The  Emperor  returned  to  France.  On  rejoining  his  wife, 
he  once  more  yielded  to  that  sort  of  affection  with  which 
she  always  inspired  him,  and  which  was  sometimes  a  trouble 
to  him,  because  it  rendered  him  uncomfortable  when  he  had 
deeply  grieved  her. 

On  one  occasion,  when  he  was  talking  with  her  about  the 
quarrels  of  the  King  of  Holland  and  his  wife,  the  death  of 
the  young  Napoleon,  and  the  delicate  health  of  the  only 
child  remaining  to  the  ill-assorted  pair,  he  spoke  of  the  obli- 
gation which  might  one  day  be  imposed  upon  himself  of 
taking  a  wife  who  should  give  him  children.  He  approached 
the  subject  with  some  emotion,  and  added :  "  If  such  a  thing 
should  happen,  Josephine,  it  will  be  for  you  to  help  me  to 
make  the  sacrifice.  I  shall  count  upon  your  love  to  save  me 
from  all  the  odium  of  a  forced  rupture.  You  would  take 
the  initiative,  would  you  not  ?  You  would  enter  into  my 
position,  and  you  would  have  the  courage  to  withdraw  ? " 
The  Empress  knew  her  husband's  character  too  well  to  facili- 
tate beforehand,  by  one  imprudent  word,  the  step  which  she 
repelled  as  much  as  she  could ;  so  that  during  this  conversa- 
tion, far  from  leading  him  to  hope  that  she  would  contribute 
to  soften  the  effect  of  such  a  proceeding  by  her  conduct,  she 
assured  him  that  she  would  obey  his  orders,  but  that  she 
would  never  anticipate  them.  She  made  this  reply  in  that 
calm  and  dignified  tone  which  she  always  did  well  to  assume 
toward  Bonaparte,  and  it  was  not  without  effect.  "  Sire," 
said  she  (it  should  be  remarked  that  from  the  beginning  of 


582  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

his  reign  slie  always  addressed  him,  even  when  they  were 
alone,  with  the  forms  of  ceremonious  respect),  "  you  are  the 
master,  and  you  shall  decide  my  fate.  If  you  should  order 
me  to  quit  the  Tuileries,  I  will  obey  on  the  instant ;  but  the 
least  you  can  do  is  to  give  me  that  order  in  a  positive  man- 
ner. I  am  your  wife  ;  I  have  been  crowned  by  you  in  the 
presence  of  the  Pope.  Such  honors,  at  least,  demand  that 
they  should  not  be  voluntarily  renounced.  If  you  divorce 
me,  all  France  shall  know  that  it  is  you  who  send  me  away, 
and  shall  be  ignorant  neither  of  my  obedience  nor  of  my 
profound  grief."  This  manner  of  replying,  which  was 
always  the  same,  did  not  annoy  the  Emperor,  and  even 
seemed  occasionally  to  touch  him ;  for,  when  on  several  oc- 
casions he  recurred  to  the  subject,  he  frequently  wept,  and 
was  genuinely  agitated  by  contending  feelings. 

Mme.  Bonaparte,  who  retained  her  self-control  so  admi- 
rably while  in  his  presence,  gave  way  to  excessive  emotion 
on  relating  to  me  all  that  had  passed.  Sometimes  she  wept 
bitterly ;  at  other  moments  she  would  dwell  on  the  ingrati- 
tude of  such  conduct.  She  recalled  to  mind  that  when  she 
married  Bonaparte  he  had  considered  himself  highly  honored 
by  her  alliance,  and  she  asserted  that  it  was  an  odious  deed 
to  repudiate  her  in  his  greatness,  after  she  had  consented  to 
share  his  low  fortunes.  Sometimes  she  became  so  excited 
that  she  even  yielded  to  apprehensions  concerning  her  per- 
sonal safety.  "  I  will  never  give  in  to  him ;  I  will  demean 
myself  entirely  as  his  victim ;  but,  if  I  stand  too  resolutely 
in  his  way,  who  can  tell  of  what  he  would  be  capable,  or 
whether  he  would  resist  the  necessity  of  getting  rid  of  me ! " 
When  she  spoke  thus,  I  made  every  effort  to  calm  her  imagi- 
nation, which  no  doubt  led  her  too  far.  "Whatever  I  might 
think  of  the  facility  with  which  Bonaparte  yielded  to  politi- 
cal necessity,  I  did  not  believe  for  a  moment  that  he  would 
be  capable  of  conceiving  and  executing  the  black  designs 
of  which  she  then  suspected  him.  But  he  had  acted  in  such 
a  way  on  several  occasions,  and  he  had  used  such  language, 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  583 

that  it  was  not  wonderful  that  misery  such  as  hers  should 
inspire  her  with  suspicions  of  the  sort.  And,  although  I 
solemnly  declare  that  in  my  conscience  I  did  not  believe  he 
had  ever  contemplated  such  a  means  of  getting  out  of  his 
difficulty,  I  was  unable  to  make  any  other  reply  to  the  Em- 
press than,  "  Madame,  be  quite  sure  that  he  is  not  capable 
of  going  so  far." 

For  my  own  part,  I  was  astonished  that  a  woman  so  com- 
pletely disenchanted  concerning  her  husband,  tortured  by  a 
dreadful  suspicion,  detached  from  every  affection,  and  indif- 
ferent to  fame,  should  hold  so  strongly  to  the  enjoyment  of 
such  a  precarious  royalty ;  but,  seeing  that  nothing  availed 
to  disgust  her  with  it,  I  contented  myself  with  entreating 
her,  as  I  had  always  done,  to  keep  silence,  and  to  maintain 
her  calm,  sorrowful,  but  determined  attitude  in  the  presence 
of  the  Emperor,  for  I  knew  well  that  by  these  means  only 
could  she  turn  aside  or  delay  the  storm.  He  knew  that  his 
wife  was  generally  beloved.  Day  by  day  public  opinion 
was  becoming  alienated  from  him,  and  he  was  afraid  of  in- 
censing it. 

When  the  Empress  confided  her  sorrows  to  her  daughter, 
she  did  not,  as  I  have  already  said,  find  her  very  capable  of 
understanding  her.  Since  the  death  of  her  child,  the  sor- 
rows of  vanity  had  appeared  more  than  ever  inexplicable  to 
Queen  Hortense,  and  her  sole  answer  to  her  mother  ajways 
was,  "  How  can  any  one  regret  a  throne  ? " 

Mme.  de  la  Eochefoucauld,  to  whom  Mme.  Bonaparte 
also  spoke,  was,  as  I  have  said,  somewhat  frivolous,  and 
passed  over  everything  as  lightly  as  she  could.  The  burden 
of  the  Empress's  confidence  fell,  therefore,  upon  me.  The 
Emperor  was  aware  of  the  fact,  but  did  not  at  that  time 
resent  it  to  me.  I  know  he  even  said  to  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
"  It  must  be  acknowledged  that  the  Empress  is  well  advised." 
When  his  passions  gave  his  intellect  a  chance,  he  could  esti- 
mate fairly  and  wisely  enough  conduct  which  embarrassed 
him,  provided  it  only  embarrassed  him  a  little,  because  he 


584  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

always  knew  that  when  he  chose  he  could  surmount  the  light 
obstacles  that  were  opposed  to  him ;  and  he  allowed  one  to 
play  one's  own  cards,  because  he  knew  that  in  the  end  he 
should  none  the  less  surely  win  the  game.* 

*  My  father  has  often  quoted  this  reflection,  and  many  others  of  the  same 
kind  which  occur  in  these  Memoirs,  to  prove  that  it  was  more  possible  than  has 
been  supposed  to  oppose  the  Emperor  successfully,  and  that  he  was  sometimes 
capable  of  enduring  contradiction.  The  impossibility  of  opposing  his  plans,  or 
even  of  inducing  him  to  hesitate,  is  his  servants'  best  excuse  for  their  own  do- 
cility. It  is  very  probable  that  a  more  frequent  opposition  would  have  acted 
upon  him,  and  he  was  capable  of  understanding  and  accepting  it  at  certain  mo- 
ments ;  the  difficulty  was,  doubtless,  to  discern  these  moments,  and  to  avoid 
rousing,  if  not  his  anger,  at  least  his  vanity.  My  father  knew  from  those  who 
had  often  spoken  with  him  that  this  could  be  done,  and  that  persons  who  flat- 
tered him  in  tete-d-tete  conversation  were  unpardonable.  His  intellect,  which 
was  in  general  penetrating  and  just,  forced  him  to  yield,  at  least  temporarily,  to 
the  truth.  He  was  even  capable  of  a  certain  impartiality  which  he  liked  to 
parade.  I  knew  two  examples  of  this,  which  deserve  to  be  recorded. 

The  first  relates  to  a  certain  conversation  between  the  Emperor  and  the  son 
of  Mme.  de  Stael,  just  after  his  return  from  Italy  on  the  28th  of  December, 
1807.  Bourrienne  has  narrated  with  tolerable  exactness  in  his  Memoirs  all 
that  passed.  It  was  after  this  interview  that  the  Emperor  said,  "  How  can  the 
Neck'er  family  be  for  the  Bourbons,  whose  first  duty,  if  they  ever  came  back 
into  France,  would  be  to  hang  them  all  ?  " 

My  father  learned  the  following  details  of  this  interview:  "Auguste  de 
Stael  told  me  that,  after  his  mother  had  been  exiled,  he  was  obliged  to  appeal 
to  the  Emperor  himself  about  a  claim  to  a  sum  of  two  millions,  I  think,  which 
Necker  had  left  as  security  in  the  public  treasury.  Auguste  was  straightfor- 
ward and  upright,  and  had  very  exalted  moral  sentiments,  and  perfect  rectitude 
of  intention  and  principle ;  and,  although  he  was  very  young,  he  did  not  hesi- 
tate to  acquit  himself  of  a  difficult  commission  at  his  mother's  desire.  He  saw 
the  Emperor,  explained  his  business  to  him,  and  was  listened  to  with  attention 
and  even  with  kindness,  although,  in  fact,  the  demand  never  was  acceded  to 
under  the  Emperor's  reign.  When  he  had  concluded  his  statements  and  was 
about  to  take  leave,  Napoleon  said  to  him :  *  And  you,  young  man — what  do 
you  do  ?  What  do  you  intend  to  be  ?  One  must  be  something  in  this 
world :  what  are  your  plans  ? '  '  Sire,  I  can  be  nothing  in  France ;  I  can  not 
serve  a  Government  which  persecutes  my  mother.'  '  Quite  right ;  but  then,  as 
by  your  birth  you  can  be  something  out  of  France,  why  not  go  to  England  ?  For, 
you  see,  there  are  only  two  nations,  France  and  England ;  all  the  rest  are  no- 
thing.' This  saying  struck  Auguste  de  Stael  most  of  all  the  Emperor's  conver- 
sation ;  he  regarded  it  as  a  great  proof  of  impartiality  of  mind  that  the  Em- 
peror should  give  this  high  rank  among  nations  to  England,  a  country  with 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  585 

Meanwhile  we  went  to  Fontainebleau,  and  the  fetes,  the 
presence  of  foreign  princes,  and  above  all  the  drama  which 
Bonaparte  was  preparing  for  Spain,  diverted  his  mind  from 
the  question  of  the  divorce,  and  at  first  everything  went 
smoothly  enough. 

My  friendship  with  Talleyrand  became  confirmed,  and 
the  Empress  was  rejoiced  at  this,  because  she  hoped  that 
when  occasion  arose  it  would  be  useful,  or  at  least  conve- 
nient, to  herself.  I  have  said  that  just  then  the  sovereigns 
of  the  duchy  of  Berg  and  Fouche  the  Minister  of  Police 
were  scheming  in  concert.  Mme.  Murat  always  contrived 
to  quarrel  with  anybody  who  was  about  the  Empress,  and 
spared  no  pains  for  that  end.  Talleyrand  and  Fouche  were 

which  he  could  not  live  in  peace,  and  which  he  made  his  orators  and  his  journals 
insult  every  day." 

Here  is  a  second  example  of  this  impartiality  of  mind.  "  After  the  battle 
of  Torres  Vedras,"  said  my  father,  "  General  Foy  was  charged,  by  his  principal 
comrades  of  the  Army  of  Portugal,  to  endeavor  to  see  the  Emperor  on  return- 
ing to  France,  to  make  known  to  him  the  true  state  of  things,  and,  lastly,  to 
explain  that  another  general  than  Massena  was  necessary,  age  and  infirmity 
having  rendered  that  illustrious  warrior  unequal  to  such  a  command.  The 
army  wanted  General  Soult.  Foy  had  the  sentiments  and  the  position  which 
Marmont  describes  in  his  Memoirs,  and  which  he  owed  to  the  friendship  of  the 
latter,  who  gave  him  shelter  in  his  camp  when  he  escaped  after  Moreau's  trial. 
He  did  not  like  the  Emperor,  and  did  not  know  him,  and  the  Emperor  neither 
liked  nor  knew  him ;  nevertheless,  he  received  him,  and  Foy  acquitted  himself  of 
his  commission,  making  his  statements  and  his  reflections.  The  Emperor  heard 
him,  questioned  him,  and  talked  to  him.  He  discussed  Massena  and  Soult, 
criticising  them  as  freely  as  if  he  had  been  speaking  to  a  familiar  confidant. 
His  opinions  of  the  Marshals,  in  general,  were  those  which  we  know.  Some 
were  not  to  be  relied  upon ;  others  were  stupid.  I  can  not  enter  into  the  details, 
as  I  might  make  a  mistake,  but  once  he  said,  suddenly,  '  Ah  !  tell  me,  my  sol- 
diers fight?'  'How,  Sire?  Of  course  they  do.'  'But  are  they  afraid  of  the 
English  soldiers  ?  '  «  Sire,  they  respect  them,  but  they  are  not  afraid  of  them/ 
4  No,  no  ?  And  yet  the  English  have  always  beaten  them — Cressy,  Agincourt, 
Malplaquet — '  *  It  seems  to  me,  Sire,  that  at  the  battle  of  Fontenoy — '  *  Ah ! 
the  battle  of  Fontenoy ;  that  was  a  day  which  prolonged  the  monarchy  forty 
years  beyond  the  time  it  ought  to  have  lasted.'  The  interview  occupied  three 
hours.  Foy  recalled  it  with  the  greatest  pleasure,  and  he  added,  *  Ever  since  that 
day  I  have  not  loved  the  Empire  any  better,  but  I  have  passionately  admired 
the  Emperor.'  "—P.  R. 


586  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  ItHSMUSAT. 

jealous  and  distrustful  of  each  other,  and  at  this  period  the 
great  importance  of  the  former  gave  umbrage  to  all. 

About  two  or  three  weeks  before  the  end  of  our  sojourn 
at  Fontainebleau  the  Minister  of  Police  arrived  one  morning. 
He  remained  a  long  time  in  the  Emperor's  cabinet,  and  was 
afterward  invited  to  dine  with  him,  an  honor  rarely  accorded 
to  any  one.  During  dinner  Bonaparte  was  in  high  spirits. 
Some  sort  of  amusement,  I  forget  what,  filled  up  the  evening. 
Toward  midnight,  when  every  one  had  retired,  one  of  the 
Empress's  attendants  knocked  at  my  door.  My  maid  told 
him  I  had  gone  to  bed.  The  man  replied  that  I  need  not 
get  up,  but  that  the  Empress  begged  my  husband  would 
come  to  her  at  once. 

M.  de  Remusat,  who  had  not  yet  left  my  room,  imme- 
diately repaired  to  the  Empress's  apartment.  He  found  her 
half  undressed,  pale,  and  in  great  agitation.  She  sent  away 
her  women,  and,  exclaiming  that  she  was  lost,  placed  in  my 
husband's  hands  a  long  letter,  written  upon  large  paper,  and 
signed  by  Fouche  himself.  In  this  letter  Fouche  began  by 
protesting  that  his  former  devotion  to  her  was  quite  unal- 
tered, and  assuring  her  that  it  was  in  consequence  of  that 
sentiment  he  ventured  to  ask  her  to  consider  her  position 
and  the  Emperor's.  He  represented  the  Emperor  as  all- 
powerful,  depicted  him  at  the  height  of  his  glory,  sovereign 
master  of  France,  but  accountable  to  that  same  France  for 
the  present  and  for  the  future  which  were  confided  to  him. 
"We  must  not  disguise  from  ourselves,  Madame,"  said  he, 
"  that  the  political  future  of  France  is  compromised  by  the 
want  of  an  heir  to  the  Emperor.  As  Minister  of  Police,  I 
am  placed  in  a  position  to  judge  of  public  opinion,  and 
I  know  that  the  succession  to  such  an  empire  gives  rise  to 
public  uneasiness.  Picture  to  yourself  what  would  be  the 
strength  of  his  Majesty's  throne  to-day,  if  it  were  supported 
by  the  existence  of  a  son."  This  advantage  was  dwelt  upon 
skillfully  and  at  length,  as  indeed  it  might  well  be.  Fouche 
then  spoke  of  the  opposition  between  the  conjugal  affection 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  587 

of  the  Emperor  and  his  policy.  He  foresaw  that  he  would 
never  bring  himself  to  prescribe  so  grievous  a  sacrifice,  and 
he  therefore  ventured  to  advise  Mme.  Bonaparte  to  make  a 
courageous  effort  on  her  own  part,  to  resign  herself,  to  im- 
molate herself  for  France ;  and  he  drew  a  very  pathetic  pic- 
ture of  the  eclat  which  such  an  action  would  cast  upon  her 
now  and  in  the  future.  Lastly,  the  letter  ended  with  a 
declaration  that  the  Emperor  was  quite  ignorant  of  its  hav- 
ing been  written,  that  the  writer  knew  it  would  be  displeas- 
ing to  him,  and  earnestly  entreated  the  Empress  to  keep  it  a 
profound  secret. 

"We  may  easily  imagine  all  the  oratorical  phrases  that 
adorned  this  letter,  which  had  every  appearance  of  having 
been  written  with  care  and  reflection.  The  first  thought  of 
M.  de  Kemusat  was  that  Fouche  had  not  attempted  such  a 
proceeding  without  an  understanding  with  the  Emperor ;  he, 
however,  took  good  care  not  to  indicate  this  conviction  to  the 
Empress,  who  was  making  visible  efforts  to  repel  the  same 
suspicion  on  her  own  part,  while  her  tears  and  agitation 
proved  that  she  dared  not  count  upon  the  Emperor  on  this 
occasion.  "What  shall  I  do?"  asked  she.  "How  shall  I 
avert  this  storm  ? "  "  Madame,"  said  M.  de  Kemusat,  "  I 
strongly  advise  you  to  go  this  instant  to  the  Emperor's  room, 
if  he  has  not  yet  retired,  or,  at  all  events,  to  go  to  him  very 
early  to-morrow.  Remember  that  you  must  seem  to  have 
consulted  nobody.  Make  him  read  that  letter ;  watch  him 
if  you  can,  but  at  any  rate  show  him  that  you  are  angry  at 
this  side-winded  advice,  and  declare  to  him  anew  that  you 
will  only  obey  positive  orders  pronounced  by  himself." 

The  Empress  adopted  this  advice.  She  begged  my  hus- 
band to  tell  M.  de  Talleyrand  all  that  had  occurred,  and  to 
report  to  her  what  he  said ;  then,  as  it  was  late,  she  put  off 
her  conversation  with  the  Emperor  until  the  next  morning. 
"When  she  showed  Bonaparte  the  letter,  he  affected  to  be  ex- 
tremely angry,  and  declared  that  he  was  totally  ignorant  of 
this  proceeding ;  that  Fouche  had  exhibited  quite  uncalled- 


588  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

for  zeal,  and  that,  if  he  had  not  set  out  for  Paris,  he  should 
have  been  severely  reprimanded.  The  Emperor  added  that 
he  would  punish  the  Minister  of  Police  if  the  Empress 
wished  it,  and  would  even  go  so  far  as  to  remove  him  from 
the  Ministry,  should  she  exact  such  a  reparation.  He  accom- 
panied this  declaration  with  many  caresses ;  but  his  manner 
did  not  convince  the  Empress,  who  told  me  the  same  day 
that  she  was  aware  he  was  greatly  embarrassed  during  this 
explanation. 

In  the  mean  time  the  matter  was  discussed  between  my 
husband  and  myself.  We  saw  very  clearly  that  Fouche*  had 
been  induced  to  take  this  step  by  a  superior  order,  and  we 
said  to  each  other  that,  if  the  Emperor  were  seriously  think- 
ing of  divorce,  it  was  exceedingly  unlikely  Talleyrand  would 
be  opposed  to  the  step.  What  was  our  surprise  to  find  that 
at  this  moment  he  was  so !  Talleyrand  listened  to  us  very 
attentively,  and  like  a  man  who  was  totally  unaware  of  what 
had  happened.  He  considered  Fouche's  letter  improper  and 
ridiculous,  and  added  that  the  idea  of  the  divorce  appeared 
to  him  utterly  mistaken.  He  took  my  view,  and  that  vehe- 
mently ;  advised  that  the  Empress  should  take  a  very  high 
tone  with  the  Minister  of  Police,  and  should  tell  him  that  he 
had  no  business  to  interfere  in  such  a  matter.  He  added 
that,  if  the  affair  were  ever  arranged,  it  ought  to  be  settled 
without  any  go-between.  The  Empress  was  delighted  with 
this  advice,  and  she  and  I  together  composed  a  cold  and  dig- 
nified reply  to  Fouche's  letter.  Talleyrand  read  and  ap- 
proved of  this,  and  desired  us  to  show  it  to  the  Emperor, 
who,  he  said,  would  not  venture  to  find  fault  with  it.  He 
was  right;  and  Bonaparte,  who  had  not  yet  made  up  his 
mind,  continued  to  play  the  same  part,  to  exhibit  increasing 
anger,  to  indulge  in  violent  threats,  and  to  declare  with  so 
much  iteration  that  he  would  dismiss  the  Minister  of  Police  if 
she  wished  it,  that  the  Empress,  tranquillized  by  degrees  and 
deceived  anew,  ceased  to  feel  any  resentment  toward  Fouche, 
whom  she  no  longer  feared,  and  refused  the  offered  repara- 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  589 

tion,  telling  her  husband  that  she  would  not  on  any  account 
have  him  deprive  himself  of  the  services  of  a  man  who  was 
useful  to  him,  and  that  it  would  be  enough  if  he  "  scolded 
him  well." 

Fouche  came  back  to  Fontaiaebleau  a  few  days  afterward. 
In  Mme.  Bonaparte's  presence  her  husband  treated  him  with 
scrupulous  coldness ;  but  the  Minister  did  not  seem  to  mind 
that  in  the  least,  which  confirmed  me  in  my  belief  that  the 
whole  thing  had  been  arranged.  He  repeated  to  the  Em- 
press all  that  he  had  written.  The  Emperor  told  his  wife 
that  he  went  over  precisely  the  same  ground  with  him.  "  It 
is  an  excess  of  zeal,"  said  he.  "  We  must  not  be  angry  with 
him  for  it ;  it  is  quite  enough  that  we  are  determined  to 
reject  his  advice,  and  you  know  well  that  I  could  not  live 
without  you."  *  Bonaparte  repeated  these  same  words  to  his 
wife  day  and  night.  He  was  much  more  with  her  than  he 
had  recently  been,  was  really  agitated,  would  take  her  in  his 
arms  and  protest  the  most  passionate  love;  and  in  these 
scenes,  which  were  at  first,  as  I  believe,  acted  for  a  purpose, 
he  involuntarily  became  quite  carried  away,  and  ended  by 
experiencing  sincere  emotion. 

All  that  he  said  was  confided  to  me,  and  I  repeated  it  to 
Talleyrand,  who  dictated  the  line  of  conduct  to  be  observed. 
His  advice  steadily  tended  to  avert  the  divorce,  and  he  guided 
Mme.  Bonaparte  very  well.  I  could  not  refrain  from  letting 
him  see  that  I  was  somewhat  astonished  he  should  oppose 
a  project  which  had  certainly  a  reasonable  political  aspect, 
and  that  he  should  take  so  much  interest  in  the  purely  domes- 
tic side  of  the  affair.  He  replied  that  it  was  not  altogether 
so  domestic  as  I  imagined.  "  There  is  nobody,"  he  said,  "  in 

*  The  Emperor  wrote  to  Fouche  from  Fontainebleau,  on  the  5th  of  Novem- 
ber, 1807,  the  following  letter: 

"  MONSIEUR  FOUCHE  :  For  a  fortnight  past  I  have  been  hearing  of  follies  on 
your  part ;  it  is  time  that  you  should  put  an  end  to  them,  and  that  you  should 
cease  to  meddle,  directly  or  indirectly,  in  a  matter  that  can  not  possibly  concern 
you  in  any  way.  Such  is  my  will." — P.  R. 


590  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

the  palace  who  ought  not  to  desire  that  this  woman  should 
remain  with  Bonaparte.  She  is  gentle  and  good,  she  has  the 
art  of  keeping  him  quiet,  and  she  enters  quite  sufficiently 
into  everybody's  position.  She  is  a  refuge  for  us  on  a  thou- 
sand occasions.  If  a  Princess  were  to  come  here,  we  should 
find  the  Emperor  break  with  all  the  Court,  and  we  should 
all  be  crushed." 

Giving  me  these  reasons,  Talleyrand  convinced  me  that  he 
was  speaking  sincerely ;  but  yet  he  was  not  telling  me  all  his 
secret,  for,  while  he  repeated  to  me  that  we  must  all  unite  to 
avert  the  divorce,  he  frequently  asked  me  what  would  be- 
come of  me  if  by  any  chance  the  Emperor  carried  the  plan 
into  effect.  I  replied  that  without  hesitation  I  should  share 
the  fate  of  my  Empress.  "  But,"  said  he,  "  do  you  love  her 
well  enough  to  do  that  ? "  "  Certainly,"  I  replied,  "  I  am 
attached  to  her ;  nevertheless,  as  I  know  her  well,  as  I  know 
her  to  be  frivolous  and  hardly  capable  of  a  steady  affection, 
it  would  not  be  the  dictates  of  my  heart  that  I  should  follow 
on  this  occasion,  so  much  as  those  of  propriety.  I  came  to 
this  Court  through  Mme.  Bonaparte's  influence ;  I  have  al- 
ways passed  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  as  her  intimate  friend  ; 
I  have  had  the  burden  and  the  confidence  of  that  friendship ; 
and,  although  she  has  been  too  much  taken  up  with  her  own 
position  to  care  much  about  me,  although  she  has  thrown  me 
aside  and  taken  me  up  again,  as  it  suited  her  convenience,  the 
public,  who  can  not  enter  into  the  secrets  of  our  mutual  rela- 
tions, and  to  whom  I  shall  not  confide  them,  would,  I  am 
sure,  be  astonished  if  I  did  not  share  her  exile."  "  But," 
said  Talleyrand,  "this  would  gratuitously  put  you  into  a 
position  which  might  be  very  unpleasant  for  yourself  and 
your  husband,  and  would  perhaps  separate  you.  You  would 
have  to  encounter  many  small  difficulties,  for  which  assured- 
ly she  would  not  pay  you."  "  I  know  that  as  well  as  you," 
said  I.  "  She  is  changeable  and  even  whimsical.  I  can  fore- 
see that  in  such  a  case  she  would  be  at  first  very  grateful  for 
my  devotion,  then  she  would  get  used  to  it,  and  finally  she 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  591 

would  think  no  more  about  it.  But  her  character  shall  not 
prevent  me  from  acting  in  accordance  with  my  own,  and  I 
will  do  what  seems  to  be  my  duty  without  expecting  the 
smallest  reward." 

In  fact,  when  speaking,  about  this  time,  of  the  chances  of 
the  divorce,  I  promised  the  Empress  that  I  would  leave  the 
Court  if  ever  she  left  it.  She  seemed  deeply  touched  by 
this  declaration,  which  I  made  with  tears  and  sincere  emo- 
tion. Assuredly  she  ought  to  have  resisted  the  suspicions 
which  she  afterward  conceived  against  me,  and  of  which  I 
shall  give  an  account  in  due  time.*  I  placed  only  one  re- 

*  The  author  indicates  in  this  passage,  and  in  another,  that,  at  a  later  period, 
and  on  the  occasion  of  the  divorce,  the  Empress  conceived  some  unjust  distrust 
of  her.  I  have  absolutely  no  data  upon  this  fact,  which  had  apparently  some 
importance,  because  she  promises  to  revert  to  it.  It  is,  therefore,  the  more  to 
be  regretted  that  she  was  not  able  to  continue  this  work,  at  least  down  to  the 
epoch  of  the  Emperor's  divorce.  These  scenes,  forerunners  of  the  event,  give 
us  a  glimpse  of  the  mixture  of  cunning  and  impulse,  emotion  and  acting,  weak- 
ness and  obstinacy,  which  characterized  him  in  so  many  matters,  but  in  none  so 
strongly  as  in  his  rupture  with  perhaps  the  only  person  whom  he  ever  loved. 
It  would  have  been  interesting  to  read  the  account  of  the  whole,  related  by  one 
who  had  had  such  opportunities  of  observing  the  actors  in  the  drama.  As  for 
her,  she  preserved  a  constant  fidelity  to  the  Empress ;  and,  when  the  divorce 
took  place,  did  not  hesitate  as  to  what  she  should  do,  although  Queen  Hortense 
herself  begged  her  to  reflect  before  she  made  up  her  mind  to  quit  the  Court. 
The  following  is  the  letter  in  which  she  announced  her  resolution  to  my  grand- 
father, who  had  accompanied  the  Empress  to  Trianon : 

*'  MALMAISON,  December,  1809. 

"  I  had  hoped  for  a  moment  that  you  would  have  accompanied  the  Emperor 
yesterday,  and  that  I  should  have  seen  you.  Independently  of  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  you,  I  wanted  to  talk  to  you.  I  hope  there  will  be  some  opportunity  for 
Trianon  to-day,  and  I  will  keep  my  letter  ready. 

"  I  was  received  here  with  real  aifection.  All  is  very  sad,  as  you  may  sup- 
pose. The  Empress,  who  has  no  more  need  of  effort,  is  greatly  cast  down ;  she 
weeps  incessantly,  and  it  is  really  painful  to  see  her.  Her  children  are  full  of 
courage.  The  Viceroy  is  come — he  keeps  her  up  as  well  as  possible ;  and  they 
are  of  the  greatest  use  to  her.  Yesterday  I  had  a  conversation  with  the  Queen 
[of  Holland].  I  will  repeat  it  to  you  as  succinctly  as  possible.  '  The  Empress/ 
said  she,  '  has  been  deeply  touched  by  the  readiness  which  you  have  shown  to 
share  her  fate.  I  am  not  surprised  at  it,  but,  out  of  friendship  to  you,  I  beg  of 
you  to  reflect.  Your  husband  is  placed  near  the  Emperor ;  all  your  instincts 

43 


592  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

striction  upon  the  promise  which  I  made :  "  I  will  not  be 
Lady-in-Waiting  to  another  Empress.  If  you  retire  into 
some  country  place,  I  will  follow  you,  being  always  happy  to 

ought  to  be  on  that  side.  Will  not  your  position  be  frequently  false  and  embar- 
rassing ?  Can  you  bring  yourself  to  renounce  the  advantages  attached  to  the 
service  of  a  young  and  reigning  Empress  ?  Think  of  it  well ;  I  give  you  a 
friend's  advice,  and  you  ought  to  reflect.'  I  thanked  the  Queen  sincerely,  but 
replied  that  I  could  not  perceive  any  objection  to  my  taking  this  step,  which 
appeared  the  only  one  proper  for  me  to  take  ;  that,  if  the  Empress  foresaw  any 
difficulty  in  retaining  in  her  service  the  wife  of  a  man  who  was  in  the  Emperor's, 
then  I  would  retire,  but  that,  unless  such  was  the  case,  I  would  greatly  prefer 
to  remain  with  her ;  that  I  thought  there  might  be  some  advantages  for  persons 
attached  to  the  great  Court,  but  that  their  loss  was  more  than  compensated  to 
me  by  the  consciousness  of  fulfilling  a  duty,  and  of  being  useful  to  the  Empress, 
if  rhe  valued  my  services ;  that  I  did  not  think  the  Emperor  could  be  displeased 
with  ray  conduct,  etc.,  etc.  '  There  is  only  one  consideration,  Madame,'  said  I, 
in  addition,  *  which  could  induce  me  for  one  moment  to  regret  the  part  I  have 
taken.  I  will  tell  you  very  frankly  what  that  is.  It  is  impossible  that  there 
should  not  be,  in  the  interior  of  this  little  Court  here,  some  indiscretion,  some 
gossip,  something  or  other  which,  being  repeated  to  the  Emperor,  may  bring 
about  a  momentary  annoyance.  The  Empress,  good  as  she  is,  is  sometimes 
distrustful.  I  do  not  know  whether  the  proof  of  devotion  which  I  am  now  giv- 
ing her  will  shelter  me  completely  from  a  passing  suspicion  which  would  greatly 
grieve  me.  I  acknowledge  that,  if  it  should  happen,  even  once,  that  my  husband 
or  myself  were  suspected  of  meditating  an  indiscretion,  on  one  side  or  the  other, 
I  would  immediately  quit  the  Empress.'  The  Queen  replied  that  I  was  quite 
right,  and  that  she  hoped  her  mother  would  be  prudent.  She  then  embraced 
me,  and  said  that  she  knew  that  the  Empress  wished  in  her  heart  to  have  me 
with  her.  I  needed  nothing  more,  in  the  mind  in  which,  as  you  know,  I  am,  to 
decide  me. 

"  Now  let  me  know  what  you  think.  I  know  that  my  position  will  often  be 
embarrassing,  but  with  prudence  and  true  attachment  may  not  everything  come 
right  ?  Mme.  de  la  Eochefoucauld  seems  to  me  to  want  to  get  away — she  has 
even,  I  think,  said  something  to  the  Emperor;  but  her  position  is  different. 
She  will  render  the  same  services  to  the  Empress,  but  without  annuity  or  pen- 
sion. In  her  position  that  may  suit  her,  but  I  think  I  must  act  otherwise; 
and,  indeed,  the  more  I  question  myself,  the  more  I  feel  that  my  place  is  here. 
Put  all  this  together,  reflect,  and  then  decide ;  and  remember  that  I  have  time. 
We  are  given  to  the  1st  of  January. 

"  One  would  need  to  be  very  happy  to  find  this  place  pleasant  in  this  season ; 
there  is  an  abominable  wind,  and  it  is  always  raining.  That,  however,  has  not 
prevented  a  succession  of  visitors  all  day  long.  Each  visitor  renews  her  tears. 
Nevertheless,  it  is  no  harm  that  all  her  impressions  should  be  renewed  thus  in 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  593 

share  your  solitude  ;  and  I  will  never  leave  you,  except  you 
should  quit  France." 

No  one  could  tell  what  was  really  passing  in  the  Emper- 

succession ;  afterward  she  will  rest.  I  think  that  I  shall  remain  at  Malmaison 
until  Saturday ;  I  wish  you  could  come  then,  because  we  really  must  meet  and 
be  a  little  while  together.  This  morning  (19th  December,  1809)  I  could  not 
find  an  opportunity  of  sending  my  letter ;  I  hope  there  will  be  one  this  evening. 
The  Empress  has  passed  a  deplorable  day ;  she  receives  visitors,  which  renews 
her  grief,  and  then  every  time  anything  reaches  her  from  the  Emperor  she  gets 
into  a  terrible  state.  We  must  find  means,  either  through  the  Grand  Marshal 
or  the  Prince  de  Neufchatel,  to  induce  the  Emperor  to  moderate  the  expression 
of  his  regret  and  his  affliction  when  he  writes  to  her,  because,  when  he  dwells  in 
this  way  upon  his  grief,  she  falls  into  real  despair,  and  seems  to  lose  her  head 
completely.  I  do  all  in  my  power  for  her ;  it  gives  me  terrible  pain  to  see  her. 
She  is  gentle,  sad,  and  affectionate — in  fact,  heart-rending.  By  affecting  her  so 
deeply,  the  Emperor  increases  her  sufferings.  In  the  midst  of  all  this  she 
never  says  a  word  too  much,  she  never  utters  a  bitter  complaint ;  she  is  really 
like  an  angel.  I  induced  her  to  take  a  walk  this  morning ;  I  wanted  to  try  to 
fatigue  her  body  in  order  to  rest  her  mind.  She  complied  mechanically.  I 
talked  to  her,  I  questioned  her,  I  did  all  I  could ;  she  seconded  my  efforts,  un- 
derstanding my  intentions,  and  seemed  grateful  to  me  in  the  midst  of  her  sor- 
rows. At  the  end  of  an  hour  I  acknowledge  that  I  was  almost  fainting  with 
the  effort  that  I  had  made,  and  for  a  few  minutes  was  as  weak  as  herself.  *  It 
seems  to  me  sometimes,'  said  she,  *  that  I  am  dead,  and  that  there  remains  to 
me  only  a  sort  of  vague  faculty  of  feeling  that  I  am  dead.'  Try,  if  you  can,  to 
make  the  Emperor  understand  that  he  ought  to  write  to  her  encouragingly,  and 
not  in  the  evening,  for  that  gives  her  terrible  nights.  She  does  not  know 
how  to  bear  his  regrets ;  no  doubt  she  could  still  less  bear  his  coldness,  but 
there  is  a  medium  in  all  this.  I  saw  her  yesterday  in  such  a  state,  after  the 
Emperor's  last  letter,  that  I  was  on  the  point  of  writing  myself  to  Trianon. 
Adieu. 

"  I  do  not  say  much  to  you  of  my  own  health ;  you  know  how  feeble  it  is, 
and  all  this  tries  it.  After  this  week  I  shall  want  a  little  rest  with  you.  To 
find  anything  pleasant,  I  must  get  home." 

My  grandmother's  letters  are  few  at  this  time,  unfortunately,  and  I  can  not 
supply  the  missing  chapters  either  by  narrative  or  by  quotations.  I  only  know 
that  her  fears  were  not  realized,  in  so  far  as  the  indiscretions  and  gossip  of  the 
Court  were  concerned ;  but  she  and  her  husband  were  involved  in  the  disgrace 
of  Talleyrand.  It  is  true  that  my  grandfather  remained  First  Chamberlain  even 
after  the  Prince  of  Benevento  had  been  deprived  of  his  pensions  as  Grand 
Chamberlain ;  but  he  did  not  recover,  nor  did  he  seek,  the  good  will  of  the 
Court  or  the  confidence  of  the  Emperor.  This  will  be  more  fully  explained  in 
the  Appendix.  My  grandmother  went  only  once,  I  think,  to  the  Tuileries,  to  be 


594:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

or's  mind,  and  he  had  once  said  to  his  wife :  "  If  you  quit 
me,  I  would  not  have  you  lose  state  or  rank  by  it ;  you  shall 
reign  somewhere,  perhaps  even  at  Kome."  It  is  to  be  re- 
marked that  when  he  was  thus  speaking  the  Pope  was  in 
that  same  Rome,  and  that  there  was  no  reason  to  suppose  he 
would  have  to  leave  the  city.  But  the  most  serious  events 
seemed  perfectly  simple  to  Napoleon;  and  from  time  to 
time,  if  one  listened  attentively,  a  word  dropped  here  and 
there  sufficed  to  indicate  the  succession  of  projects  which  he 
was  forming. 

M.  de  Remusat  thought  with  me  respecting  my  proper 
line  of  conduct.  He  was  perfectly  alive  to  the  inconvenience 
which  might  possibly  result  from  it ;  but  that  consideration 
did  not  deter  him,  and  he  repeated  to  the  Empress  that  she 
might  count  upon  my  fidelity  in  her  misfortunes,  should 
they  ever  fall  upon  her.  "We  shall  see  that  she  was  after- 
presented  to  the  new  Empress  with  great  ceremony,  and  on  another  day  to  re- 
ceive some  injunctions  from  the  Emperor.  This  latter  circumstance  deserves  to 
be  related  in  detail.  It  was  at  the  end  of  1812,  or  the  beginning  of  1813.  The 
Due  de  Friuli  came  to  see  her,  to  the  great  astonishment  of  my  grandparents, 
for  he  never  made  visits.  He  was  charged  by  the  Emperor  to  order  her  to  re- 
quest an  audience,  as  the  Emperor  wished  to  speak  to  her  of  the  Empress  Jo- 
sephine. There  were  no  means  of  disobeying  this  command,  and  no  reasons  for 
wishing  to  do  so  ;  she  requested  an  audience,  and  was  received.  My  father  did 
not  know  the  details  of  this  interview  ;  he  only  knew  that  the  Emperor  desired 
her  to  induce  the  Empress  to  go  to  a  distance  from  Paris.  What  were  his  mo- 
tives ?  Josephine's  debts  were  among  the  number,  and  also  things  that  were 
said  in  her  salon.  I  do  not  think  that  his  complaints  went  any  further,  and  the 
Emperor  exhibited  no  anger.  As  for  the  Lady-in- Waiting,  the  Emperor  was 
neither  kind  nor  unkind  to  her  ;  but  he  did  not  encourage  her  by  any  word  to 
speak  to  him  of  herself,  and  she  took  good  care  not  to  do  so.  This  was  the  last 
time  that  she  saw  Napoleon.  Afterward  she  had  to  fulfill  his  commission,  and 
this  was  a  difficult  task.  She  wrote  a  long  letter  to  the  Empress,  who  was  then 
staying,  I  believe,  at  Geneva.  The  matter  was  all  the  more  difficult  that  the 
Emperor  had  exacted  that  she  should  not  name  him,  and  that  the  advice  should 
'not  seem  to  come  from  him.  Although  it  seems  that  the  Empress  Josephine 
could  hardly  have  been  deceived,  my  father  believes  that  this  letter  was  ill 
received  by  her,  and  it  was  even  printed  in  some  Memoirs  written  under  the 
inspiration  of  Queen  Hortense,  with  reflections  more  or  less  severe  upon  the 
author.— P.  R. 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  595 

ward  induced  to  place  no  reliance  upon  a  promise  which  was 
given  with  perfect  sincerity. 

It  was  at  this  period,  and  upon  the  subject  of  the  di- 
vorce, that  we  had  certain  conversations  with  Mme.  de  la 
Rochefoucauld,  which  brought  about  the  explanations  to 
which  I  have  previously  referred,  and  that  M.  de  Remusat 
became  acquainted  with  what  had  passed  respecting  him  on 
his  return  from  the  Prussian  campaign.  These  new  lights 
added  considerably  to  the  painful  impression  of  our  succes- 
sive discoveries  relating  to  the  Emperor's  character. 

I  will  now  tell  what  I  learned  of  the  motives  which  in- 
duced Talleyrand  and  the  Minister  of  Police  to  act  in  the 
manner  which  I  have  just  recorded.  I  have  said  that  Fou- 
che,  who  was  fascinated  by  Mme.  Murat,  was  forced  in  con- 
sequence to  break  with  what  was  called  "  the  party  of  the 
Beauharnais."  I  do  not  know  whether  he  really  wished  to 
do  so ;  but,  when  a  man  mixes  himself  up  in  certain  intrigues 
in  which  women  play  a  part,  he  can  not  tell  at  what  point  he 
may  be  able  to  stop,  because  there  are  so  many  little  sayings, 
little  denunciations,  and  little  treacheries,  that  in  the  end  he 
gets  lost  among  them.  Mme.  Murat,  who  detested  her  sis- 
ter-in-law, and  did  all  in  her  power  to  drive  her  off  the 
throne,  longed  for  an  alliance  with  a  European  Princess  for 
her  own  pride's  sake,  and  plied  the  Emperor  with  flattery  on 
this  point.  Fouche  thought  that  it  would  be  useful  to  the 
new  dynasty  to  be  supported  by  a  direct  heir.  He  knew 
Bonaparte  too  well  not  to  foresee  that,  sooner  or  later,  policy 
would  take  precedence  of  every  other  consideration  with 
him.  He  was  afraid  that  he  himself  might  not  be  employed 
in  this  affair,  which  seemed  to  be  entirely  in  Talleyrand's 
line,  and  he  was  anxious  to  deprive  him  of  the  honor  and 
the  advantages  of  such  a  negotiation.  With  this  intention 
he  broke  the  ice  with  the  Emperor,  and  spoke  to  him  on  the 
important  point.  Finding  him  disposed  to  entertain  it,  he 
dwelt  upon  all  the  motives  which  were  so  easy  to  urge,  and 
ultimately  succeeded  in  extracting  from  Bonaparte  an  order, 


596  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RJ&MUSAT. 

or  at  least  a  proposal,  that  lie  should  play  the  part  of  media- 
tor between  the  Emperor  and  the  Empress  in  all  negotiations 
on  the  point.  He  went  further;  he  made  public  opinion 
declare  itself !  With  the  assistance  of  the  police,  he  got 
speeches  made  on  the  subject  of  the  divorce  at  several  places 
of  general  assembly  in  Paris.  The  people  began  to  discuss 
in  the  cafes  the  necessity  of  the  Emperor's  having  an  heir. 
These  utterances,  which  were  prompted  by  Fouche,  were 
reported  by  him  and  the  rest  of  the  police,  who  gave  an 
exact  account  of  all  that  took  place ;  and  the  Emperor  be- 
lieved that  the  public  were  far  more  occupied  with  this  sub- 
ject than  they  really  were. 

On  his  return  from  Fontainebleau,  Fouche  told  the  Em- 
peror that  there  was  great  excitement  in  Paris,  and  that  the 
populace  might  possibly  assemble  under  his  windows  and 
ask  him  to  contract  another  marriage.  The  Emperor  was  at 
first  taken  with  this  idea,  from  which  M.  de  Talleyrand 
adroitly  contrived  to  turn  him  aside.  Not  that  the  latter 
had  really  any  repugnance  to  the  divorce,  but  he  wanted  it 
to  be  effected  in  his  own  way,  at  his  own  time,  and  with 
great  utility  and  dignity.  He  was  quick  to  perceive  that  the 
zeal  of  Fouche  tended  to  deprive  him  of  the  palm,  and  he 
could  not  endure  that  any  other  scheme  should  take  the  place 
of  his  on  his  own  ground. 

France  had  formed  a  close  alliance  with  Russia,  but  M. 
de  Talleyrand,  who  was  very  able  in  the  use  he  made  of  his 
knowledge  of  the  actual  state  of  Europe,  thought  it  necessary 
to  keep  a  close  watch  on  Austria,  and  had  already  come  to 
the  conclusion  that  another  tie  between  us  and  that  Power 
would  be  the  most  useful  move  for  us.  Besides,  he  knew 
that  the  Empress-Mother  of  Russia  did  not  share  the  Czar's 
admiration  for  Napoleon, -and  that  she  would  refuse  to  give 
us  one  of  her  daughters  for  an  Empress.  Again,  it  was  pos- 
sible that  a  hurried  divorce  might  not  be  quickly  followed 
by  a  marriage,  and  the  Emperor  would  in  that  case  be  placed 
in  a  disagreeable  position.  The  contest  which  might  break 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVOKCE.  597 

out  at  any  moment  in  Spain  would  rouse  the  attention  of 
Europe,  and  it  was  not  a  moment  to  engage  ourselves  in  two 
enterprises,  both  of  which  would  demand  grave  deliberation. 

These  were,  no  doubt,  the  considerations  which  led  M.  de 
Talleyrand  to  thwart  Fouche,  and  to  espouse  the  interests  of 
Mme.  Bonaparte  for  the  time  being.  Neither  she  nor  I  was 
clever  enough  to  see  through  his  motives  at  the  time,  and  it 
was  not  until  afterward  that  I  became  aware  of  them.  M. 
de  Remusat  had  not  so  much  confidence  in  M.  de  Talley- 
rand's apparent  acquiescence  in  what  we  desired,  but  he  was 
of  opinion  that  we  might  turn  it  to  account ;  so  that,  with 
various  intentions,  we  were  all  pursuing  the  same  course. 

While  the  Emperor  was  in  Paris,  in  the  short  interval 
between  his  journey  to  Italy  and  his  journey  to  Bayonne, 
while  Fouche  was  constantly  plying  him  with  what  he  stated 
to  be  popular  opinions,  M.  de  Talleyrand  seized  an  opportu- 
nity of  showing  him  that  in  this  instance  the  Minister  of 
Police  was  misleading  him.*  "  Fouche,"  he  said  to  the  Em- 
peror, "  is,  and  always  will  be,  a  revolutionist.  Look  well 
to  it,  and  you  will  see  that  he  would  lead  you,  by  factious 
means,  to  an  act  that  should  only  be  accomplished  with  the 
parade  and  pomp  befitting  a  monarch.  He  wishes  that  a 
mob,  collected  by  his  orders,  should  come  and  vociferously 
demand  of  you  an  heir,  just  as  they  forced  concessions  from 
Louis  XVI.,  who  was  never  able  to  refuse  them.  When  you 
have  accustomed  the  people  to  meddle  with  your  affairs  after 
this  fashion,  how  do  you  know  that  it  will  not  occur  to  them 
to  do  so  again,  and  how  can  you  tell  what  they  may  subse- 
quently demand  of  you?  And,  after  all,  no  one  will  be 
duped  by  these  gatherings,  while  you  will  be  accused  of  hav- 
ing got  them  up."  The  Emperor  was  impressed  by  these 
observations,  and  imposed  silence  upon  Fouche. 

*  The  Emperor  left  Fontainebleau  on  the  16th  of  December,  1807,  and  ar- 
rived at  Milan  on  the  21st  of  the  same  month.  He  returned  to  Paris  from  Italy 
on  the  1st  of  January,  and  left  again  for  Bayonne  on  the  2d  of  April,  1808. 
— P.  R. 


598  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

From  that  moment  the  question  of  the  divorce  was  no 
longer  discussed  in  the  cafes,  and  the  "  national  wish  "  re- 
mained unexpressed.  The  effect  on  the  Emperor  of  this  si- 
lence was  favorable  to  his  wife,  and  she  felt  somewhat  reas- 
sured. He  continued,  however,  to  show  great  agitation  at 
times,  and  their  intercourse  was  constrained  and  often  inter- 
rupted by  long  fits  of  silence ;  after  which  he  would  return 
to  the  subject,  dwelling  upon  the  disadvantage  of  not  having 
a  direct  posterity  on  which  to  found  his  dynasty,  and  saying 
that  he  did  not  know  what  to  do.  He  suffered  much  from 
conflicting  feelings  at  this  time. 

He  was  particularly  confidential  with  M.  de  Talleyrand, 
who  repeated  to  me  a  portion  of  their  conversations.  "  In 
separating  myself  from  my  wife,"  Bonaparte  said,  "I  re- 
nounce all  the  charm  which  her  presence  gives  to  my  home- 
life.  I  should  have  to  study  the  tastes  and  habits  of  a 
young  wife.  This  one  accommodates  herself  to  everything ; 
she  understands  me  perfectly,  and  I  should  be  making 
her  an  ungrateful  return  for  all  she  has  done  for  me.  The 
people  care  little  for  me  as  it  is,  and  then  it  would  be  much 
worse.  She  is  a  link  between  me  and  them,  and  especially 
between  me  and  a  certain  party  in  Paris,  which  I  should 
have  to  give  up."  After  regrets  of  this  kind,  he  would 
dwell  upon  the  reasons  which  made  it  a  state  question ;  and 
M.  de  Talleyrand  told  my  husband  it  was  his  conviction  that 
this  creditable  hesitation  would  one  day  give  way  before 
political  considerations — that  the  divorce  might  be  delayed, 
but  that  it  was  vain  to  hope  that  it  could  be  ultimately 
avoided.  He  concluded  by  saying  that  we  might  rely  upon 
it  he  had  no  influence  in  the  matter,  and  that  the  Empress 
would  do  well  to  adhere  to  the  course  which  she  had 
adopted. 

M.  de  Eemusat  and  I  agreed  that  we  would  say  nothing 
to  the  Empress  about  the  first  part  of  this  statement,  which 
would  have  so  much  increased  her  apprehensions  as  perhaps 
to  betray  her  into  some  false  step ;  and  we  saw  no  use  in 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  599 

inspiring  her  with  distrust  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  had  at 
that  time  no  interest  in  injuring  her,  but  who  might  have 
had  such  an  interest  had  she  allowed  an  imprudent  word  to 
escape  her.  For  my  part,  I  resolved  to  await  the  future 
without  trying  to  foresee  it,  and  to  be  guided  by  the  pru- 
dence and  dignity  which  should  always  distinguish  those 
who  hold  a  prominent  position,  and  who  are  surrounded 
by  a  hundred  eyes  that  watch,  and  a  hundred  mouths 
ready  to  repeat  all  they  say.  It  was  at  this  period  that  the 
Emperor  said  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  "The  Empress  is  well 
advised." 

Shortly  before  his  departure  for  Bayonne,  another  expla- 
nation on  the  subject  of  the  divorce  took  place.  This  was 
the  last  at  this  time,  and  it  showed  that  the  Emperor,  willful 
as  he  was,  was  yet  capricious  in  his  moods,  and  that  he  was 
sometimes  carried  away  by  genuine  feeling. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  coming  out  of  the  Emperor's  cabinet 
one  morning,  met  M.  de  Remusat,  and  said  to  him,  as  they 
walked  toward  his  carriage :  "  I  think  your  wife  will  have  to 
meet  the  trial  that  she  fears  sooner  than  she  anticipates.  The 
Emperor  is  again  most  eager  on  the  subject  of  a  divorce ;  he 
has  spoken  to  me  of  it  as  of  a  thing  almost  decided  upon, 
and  we  shall  all  do  well  to  take  it  as  such,  and  not  vainly 
oppose  it."  My  husband  repeated  these  words  to  me ;  they 
caused  me  great  pain.  There  was  to  be  a  reception  at  Court 
that  evening.  I  had  just  lost  my  mother,  and  did  not  go 
into  society.*  M.  de  Remusat  returned  to  the  palace  to 

*  At  the  beginning  of  the  year  1808  Mme.  de  Vergennes,  who  had  been  ill 
and  suffering  for  a  long  time,  became  much  worse.  She  was  afflicted  with  pains 
which  she  called  rheumatic,  and  she  died  on  the  17th  of  January,  1808,  of  gan- 
grene of  the  throat. 

This  was  a  terrible  sorrow  to  her  daughter,  and  made  a  great  change  in  the 
lives  of  all  her  children.  My  father  always  preserved  a  lively  recollection  of 
this  clever  and  witty  woman,  although  at  the  time  of  her  death  he  was  only 
eleven  years  old.  Mme.  de  Vergennes's  position  in  society  was  sufficiently  im- 
portant to  induce  M.  Suard  to  write  an  article  about  her  in  "  La  Publicists" 
This  kind  of  public  eulogy  was  then  much  less  usual  than  it  is  now. — P.  R. 


600  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

superintend  the  play  that  was  to  be  performed.  The  apart- 
ments were  crowded.  Princes,  ambassadors,  and  courtiers 
were  all  assembled,  and  at  length  the  order  was  given  to  be- 
gin the  play,  without  waiting  for  their  Majesties,  who  would 
not  appear.  The  fete  went  off  badly,  and  the  guests  dis- 
persed as  soon  as  they  could. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  and  M.  de  Kemusat,  before  leaving  the 
palace,  went  to  the  private  apartments  of  the  Emperor, 
where  they  were  told  that  he  had  retired  with  his  wife  at 
eight  o'clock,  that  he  had  ordered  the  door  to  be  closed,  and 
that  he  should  not  be  disturbed  until  the  next  day.  M.  de 
Talleyrand  went  away  in  dudgeon.  "What  a  devil  of  a 
man ! "  said  he.  "  How  he  yields  to  sudden  impulses,  as  if 
he  did  not  really  know  what  he  wanted !  "Why  can  he  not 
come  to  some  decision,  and  cease  making  us  the  puppets 
of  his  moods,  not  knowing  what  attitude  we  are  to  assume 
toward  him  ? " 

The  Empress  received  my  husband  the  next  day,  and 
told  him  that  at  six  o'clock  she  had  joined  the  Emperor  at 
dinner ;  that  he  was  then  sad  and  silent ;  that  afterward  she 
had  left  him  to  dress  for  the  evening,  and  while  she  was 
preparing  for  the  reception  an  attendant  came  to  fetch  her, 
saying  that  the  Emperor  was  ill.  She  found  him  suffering 
from  severe  spasms,  and  in  a  highly  nervous  state.  On 
seeing  her,  he  burst  into  tears,  and,  drawing  her  toward  the 
bed  on  which  he  had  thrown  himself,  without  taking  heed 
of  her  elegant  attire,  he  folded  her  in  his  arms,  repeating 
again  and  again,  "  My  poor  Josephine,  I  can  not  leave  you." 
She  added  that  his  state  inspired  her  with  more  compassion 
than  tenderness,  and  that  she  kept  saying  to  him  time  after 
time :  "  Sire,  be  calm ;  make  up  your  mind  what  you  really 
want  to  do,  and  let  us  have  an  end  of  these  scenes."  Her 
words  seemed  only  to  add  to  his  excitement,  which  became 
so  excessive  that  she  advised  him  to  give  up  the  idea  of 
appearing  in  public,  and  to  go  to  bed.  He  consented  to  this, 
but  only  on  condition  that  she  would  remain  with  him;  and 


PROJECTS  OF  DIVORCE.  601 

she  was  obliged  at  once  to  undress  and  to  share  that  bed, 
which,  she  said,  he  literally  bathed  with  his  tears,  repeating 
constantly,  "  They  harass  me,  they  torment  me,  they  make 
me  miserable ! "  and  the  night  was  thus  passed  in  alternate 
fits  of  tenderness  and  intervals  of  agitated  sleep.  After 
this  evening  he  gained  command  over  himself,  and  never 
again  gave  way  to  such  vehement  emotion. 

The  Empress  alternated  between  hope  and  fear.  She 
placed  no  reliance  on  these  pathetic  scenes,  and  declared  that 
Bonaparte  passed  too  quickly  from  tender  protestations  to 
quarreling  with  her  about  flirtations  of  which  he  accused  her, 
or  to  other  subjects  of  complaint ;  that  he  wanted  to  break 
down  her  resistance,  to  make  her  ill,  or  perhaps  even  worse 
— for,  as  I  have  already  said,  her  imagination  pictured  every 
extreme.  Sometimes  she  would  say  that  he  was  trying  to 
disgust  her  with  him  by  incessantly  tormenting  her.  It  is 
true  that,  either  intentionally  or  because  of  his  own  agita- 
tion, he  kept  her  in  a  constant  state  of  unrest,  which  affected 
her  health. 

Fouche  talked  openly  of  the  divorce,  to  the  Empress,  to 
me,  and  to  every  one,  saying  that  he  might  be  dismissed,  but 
that  he  should  not  be  prevented  from  offering  good  advice. 
M.  de  Talleyrand  listened  to  him  in  disdainful  silence,  and 
consented  to  being  considered  by  the  public  to  be  opposed 
to  the  divorce.  Bonaparte  saw  through  all  this,  without 
blaming  the  conduct  of  the  one  or  the  other,  or,  indeed, 
that  of  any  one.* 

The  Court  observed  even  stricter  silence  than  usual,  for 

*  The  Emperor,  however,  continued,  when  he  thought  it  useful,  to  scold 
Fouche  about  his  indiscretions.  He  wrote  to  him  from  Venice  on  the  13th  of 
November,  1807:  "I  have  already  made  known  to  you  my  opinion  on  the  folly 
of  the  measures  which  you  have  taken  at  Fontainebleau  with  reference  to  my 
private  affairs.  After  reading  your  bulletin  of  the  19th,  and  being  well  informed 
of  the  opinions  which  you  openly  declare  in  Paris,  I  can  but  repeat  to  you  that 
your  duty  is  to  be  guided  by  my  will,  and  not  by  your  own  caprice.  By  behaving 
otherwise,  you  lead  the  public  astray,  and  you  go  off  the  track  which  should  be 
followed  by  every  man  of  honor." 


602  MEMOIES  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

there  was  no  positive  indication  as  to  which  of  these  great 
personages  it  would  be  prudent  to  side  with. 

In  the  midst  of  these  troubles  the  tragic  event  in  Spain 
took  place,  and  the  divorce  question  was  for  a  time  laid 
aside. 


CHAPTER  XXYIH. 

(1807-1808.) 

Return  from  Fontainebleau— The  Emperor's  Journey  in  Italy— The  Youth  of  M.  de 
Talleyrand— Fetes  at  the  Tuileries— The  Emperor  and  the  Artists— The  Em- 
peror's Opinion  of  the  English  Government — The  Marriage  of  Mile,  de  Tascher 
—Count  Eomanzoff— Marriage  of  Marshal  Berthier— The  University— Afiairs  of 
Spain. 

AT  or  about  this  time  M.  Mole  was  nominated  Prefect  of 
the  Cote-d'Or.  The  Emperor,  who  had  remarked  his  abili- 
ties on  many  occasions,  had  to  a  certain  extent  adopted  him, 
and  in  his  own  mind  decided  on  his  promotion.  He  was 
more  and  more  pleased  by  his  conversations  with  him,  in 
which  he  brought  out  all  that  was  most  remarkable  in  Mole's 
mind,  and  Bonaparte  knew  how  to  attract  the  sympathies  of 
youth.  M.  Mole  showed  some  dislike  to  the  idea  of  leaving 
Paris,  where  he  was  pleasantly  settled  with  his  family.  "  We 
must  not  hurt  people's  feelings,"  the  Emperor  said  to  him, 
"  by  sudden  promotions.  Besides,  some  experience  in  the 
affairs  of  administration  will  be  very  useful  to  you.  I  will 
only  keep  you  one  year  at  Dijon,  and  then  you  shall  return, 
and  you  will  have  reason  to  be  pleased  with  me."  He  kept 
his  word  to  M.  Mole. 

The  sojourn  of  the  Court  at  Fontainebleau  came  to  an 
end  toward  the  middle  of  November,  at  which  there  was 
general  satisfaction ;  for  every  one  was  tired  of  the  fetes,  and 
the  restraint  which  they  occasioned.  Most  of  the  foreign 
princes  returned  to  their  homes,  dazzled  by  our  magnificence, 
which  had  been  "  administered,"  if  I  may  be  permitted  the 


604  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

expression,  with  the  most  perfect  order ;  for  the  Emperor 
would  not  have  allowed  any  other  system  in  the  management 
of  his  private  affairs.  He  was  very  much  pleased  when  M. 
de  Kemusat  asked  of  him  only  150,000  francs  for  the  ex- 
penses incurred  for  the  fetes  and  plays;  and  certainly,  if 
this  sum  be  considered  relatively  to  the  results  produced,  it 
is  evident  that  minute  attention  must  have  been  paid  to 
every  detail  of  the  expenditure.  The  Emperor,  who  wished 
to  be  informed  of  all  these  details,  referred  on  this  occasion 
to  the  sum  that  it  formerly  cost  the  Court  of  France  to  make 
such  journeys,  and  he  drew  the  comparison  with  a  compla- 
cency justified  by  the  facts.  The  household  was  strictly 
administered  by  the  Grand  Marshal,  and  the  accounts  were 
kept  and  paid  with  the  utmost  regularity. 

Duroc  acquitted  himself  remarkably  well  of  this  charge, 
but  with  a  harshness  of  manner  which  was  doubtless  inspired 
by  his  master's  severity.  When  the  Emperor  scolded,  the 
consequences  were  felt  by  every  servant  in  the  palace,  in  the 
rude  treatment  to  which  they  were  subjected.  Discipline 
was  strict,  and  punishments  were  severe ;  vigilance  was  never 
relaxed,  so  that  each  one  was  always  to  be  found  at  his  post, 
and  everything  was  done  with  silent  regularity.  Every  abuse 
was  guarded  against,  and  all  wages  were  paid  punctually  and 
in  advance.  In  the  offices,  and  in  the  kitchens,  a  plate  of 
soup  or  a  glass  of  eau  sucree  was  not  given  out  without  the 
authorization  of  the  Marshal,  who  was  invariably  informed 
of  all  that  happened  in  the  palace.  His  discretion  never 
failed,  and  he  repeated  whatever  occurred  to  the  Emperor 
only. 

The  Emperor  left  Fontainebleau  to  make  a  short  tour  in 
Italy.  He  wished  to  visit  Milan  again,  to  show  himself  in 
Yenice,  and  to  communicate  with  his  brother  Joseph ;  and  I 
believe  he  wished  to  arrive,  above  all,  at  a  decision  with 
regard  to  the  kingdom  of  Italy — a  decision  by  which  he 
hoped  to  reassure  Europe.  He  also  intended  to  signify  to 
the  Queen  of  Etruria,  daughter  of  the  King  of  Spain,  that 


A  SHORT  TOUR  IN  ITALY.  605 

she  must  quit  her  kingdom.  As  lie  was  secretly  preparing 
to  invade  Spain,  lie  admitted  that  the  idea  of  the  union  of 
the  crowns  of  France  and  Italy  had  alarmed  Europe.  In 
naming  Eugene  as  successor  to  the  throne  of  Italy,  he  wished 
it  to  be  understood  that  this  union  was  not  to  last  for  ever, 
and  believed  that  the  concession  which  did  not  dispossess 
him  would  be  received,  and  the  power  of  his  successor  be 
thus  limited. 

Murat,  who  had  every  interest  in  keeping  up  daily  com- 
munication with  his  brother-in-law,  obtained  permission  to 
accompany  him  in  this  little  tour,  to  the  great  annoyance  of 
M.  de  Talleyrand,  who  foresaw  that  advantage  would  be 
taken  of  his  absence  to  frustrate  his  plans. 

The  Emperor  left  Fontainebleau  on  the  10th  of  Novem- 
ber, and  the  Empress  returned  to  Paris.  The  Prince  Pri- 
mate remained  there  some  time  longer,  as  well  as  the  Princes 
of  Mecklenburg.  They  came  to  the  Tuileries  every  evening, 
where  they  played  or  conversed,  and  listened  to  the  music. 

The  Empress  talked  more  with  the  Prince  of  MeckLen- 
burg-Schwerin  than  with  the  others:  this  was  remarked 
upon,  as  I  have  mentioned  before.  Most  people  laughed, 
and  attached  so  little  importance  to  it  as  even  to  joke  with 
the  Empress  herself  about  it.  Others  viewed  the  subject 
more  seriously,  and  wrote  to  the  Emperor ;  and  on  his  return 
he  rebuked  her  severely.  Although  accustomed  to  gratify 
all  his  own  fancies,  he  was  very  severe  on  those  of  others. 

During  this  journey,  a  vaudeville  was  represented  at  one 
of  the  small  theatres  with  such  success  that  every  one  wished 
to  see  it,  Mme.  Bonaparte  as  well  as  others.  She  requested 
M.  de  Remusat  to  get  her  a  box,  and  in  a  simple  dress,  and 
in  a  carriage  without  arms,  she  went  privately  to  the  theatre, 
accompanied  by  some  ladies  and  the  two  Princes  of  Mecklen- 
burg. This  was  immediately  reported  at  Milan,  and  the 
Emperor  wrote  a  furious  letter  to  his  wife,  and  on  his  return 
reproached  her  for  a  want  of  dignity.  I  even  remember 
that,  in  his  annoyance,  he  reminded  her  that  the  last  Queen 


606  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

of  France  had  done  herself  the  greatest  harm  by  forgetting 
what  was  due  to  her  rank,  and  indulging  in  frivolities  of  a 
similar  kind. 

During  his  absence  the  Imperial  Guard  made  a  triumphal 
entry  into  Paris.  The  Prefect  received  them  with  a  speech, 
and  many  fetes  were  given  in  their  honor. 

As  I  have  said  elsewhere,  the  Sisters  of  Charity  were  re- 
established. They  assembled,  by  order  of  the  Minister  of 
the  Interior,  in  the  apartments  of  Mme.  Mere,  where  he  dis- 
tributed medals  to  them.  "-The  Emperor  wished  his  mother 
to  be  at  the  head  of  every  charitable  institution,  but  there 
was  nothing  in  her  manner  to  make  her  popular,  and  she 
acquitted  herself  of  the  task  imposed  on  her  without  ability 
or  taste. 

The  Emperor  appeared  to  be  satisfied  with  the  adminis- 
tration of  affairs  in  Italy,  and  traveled  from  one  end  of  the 
country  to  the  other.  He  went  to  Yenice,  where  he  was 
joined  by  his  brother  Joseph,  and  by  the  King  and  Queen  of 
Bavaria.  Mme.  Bacciochi  went  to  solicit  an  extension  of  her 
estates. 

During  this  time  Russia  broke  completely  with  England. 
A  part  of  our  army,  still  in  the  north  of  Germany,  held  the 
King  of  Sweden  in  check.  Bernadotte  was  at  Hamburg  in 
communication  with  the  malcontent  Swedes,  and  he  acquired 
a  personal  reputation  which  he  carefully  maintained.  He 
expended  large  sums  in  bribes.  It  is  not  likely  that  he  could 
have  had  an  idea  at  that  time  of  what  was  afterward  to  hap- 
pen ;  but  his  ambition,  as  yet  vague,  led  him  to  turn  every 
happy  chance  that  befell  him  to  account,  and  at  that  period 
one  might,  in  certain  situations,  undertake  everything  and 
hope  for  anything. 

The  Prince  of  Brazil  left  Lisbon  on  the  29th  of  Novem- 
ber, and  General  Junot  entered  that  city  a  few  days  after- 
ward with  our  army,  declaring,  according  to  custom,  that  we 
came  to  free  the  Portuguese  from  the  yoke  of  the  English. 

Toward  the  end  of  the  month  the  Emperor,  having  as- 


MELANCHOLY  DUTIES.  607 

sembled  the  Corps  Legislatif  at  Milan,  declared  that  he 
solemnly  adopted  Eugene,  who  became  heir  to  the  crown  of 
Italy  should  the  Emperor  have  no  male  issue.  At  the  same 
time  he  endowed  him  with  the  title  of  Prince  of  Venice, 
and  he  created  the  little  princess,  who  was  just  born,  Prin- 
cess of  Bologna.  He  then  returned  to  Paris,  where  he 
arrived  on  the  1st  of  January,  1808. 

I  was  engrossed  just  then  by  melancholy  duties.  On  my 
return  from  Fontainebleau,  I  had  found  my  mother  ill.  She 
continued  for  some  time  in  a  languid  state  without  actually 
causing  me  anxiety.  Notwithstanding  her  illness,  she  evinced 
great  satisfaction  at  the  improvement  that  had  taken  place 
in  our  position,  and  I  began  during  the  first  days  of  her  ill- 
ness to  put  our  establishment  on  the  footing  which  the  Em- 
peror desired.  Toward  the  end  of  December  my  mother's 
state  became  so  alarming,  that  we  thought  of  nothing  but 
the  care  she  needed,  and  our  house  was  closed  to  visitors. 
Three  weeks  afterward  we  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  her, 
and  one  of  the  most  tender  ties  of  my  life,  one  of  its  dear- 
est enjoyments,  was  lost  to  me  for  ever.  My  mother  was  in 
every  way  a  remarkable  person.  She  was  possessed  of  great 
talent  and  judgment,  which  were  much  appreciated  in  socie- 
ty. She  was  useful  and  agreeable  to  us  at  every  moment  of 
the  day.  She  was  universally  regretted,  and  her  loss  over- 
whelmed us  with  grief.  My  husband  wept  for  her  like  a 
son ;  we  were  pitied  even  at  Court,  because  even  there  her 
worth  was  appreciated.  The  Emperor  expressed  himself 
kindly  on  hearing  of  our  calamity,  and  spoke  of  it  in  suit- 
able terms  to  M.  de  Remusat  when  he  saw  him ;  but,  as  I 
have  already  said,  the  life  of  retirement,  into*  which  good 
taste,  as  well  as  my  sorrow,  caused  us  to  withdraw,  was  op- 
posed to  his  views,  and  two  or  three  months  afterward  he 
deprived  us  of  that  increase  to  our  income  which  he  had' 
granted  us  that  we  might  entertain  in  good  style,  on  the  pre- 
text that  it  was  now  useless  to  us.  Thus  we  were  left  en- 
cumbered with  debts  which  he  had  obliged  us  to  contract. 
44 


608  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R$MUSAT. 

1  passed  that  winter  very  sorrowfully.  I  wept  bitterly 
for  my  mother ;  I  was  separated  from  my  eldest  son,  whom 
we  had  placed  at  college,  so  that  he  might  cultivate  those 
talents  for  which  he  has  since  been  remarkable,  and  which 
were  even  then  noticeable ;  my  health  was  bad,  and  my 
spirits  were  depressed.  My  society  could  not  have  been  very 
amusing  to  M.  de  Talleyrand,  yet  he  did  not  forsake  me  in 
my  sadness.  He  was,  on  the  contrary,  one  of  the  most  as- 
siduous and  attentive  of  our  visitors.  He  had  known  my 
mother  formerly,  and  he  liked  to  speak  of  her,  and  to  listen 
to  all  my  recollections  of  her.  In  the  depth  of  my  sorrow 
I  lost  all  my  little  ambition  to  appear  clever,  and  I  did  not 
endeavor  to  check  my  tears  in  his  presence. 

When  alone  with  my  husband  and  me,  he  showed  no  im- 
patience with  my  grief  nor  with  the  tenderness  of  M.  de 
Kemusat's  efforts  to  console  me.  It  seems  to  me  now,  on 
thinking  of  it,  that  he  observed  us  with  curiosity.  His  own 
life  had  been  devoid  of  natural  affections,  and  ours  was  a 
novel  spectacle  to  him,  which  touched  him  not  a  little.  He 
then  learned  for  the  first  time  what  mutual  love,  united  with 
moral  principle,  can  do  to  give  comfort  and  courage  amid  the 
trials  of  life.  That  which  he  witnessed  in  my  house  ap- 
peared to  rest  him  after  what  passed  elsewhere,  and  colored 
even  his  recollections,  for  more  than  once  at  this  time  he 
spoke  to  me  of  himself  with  regret,  and,  I  might  almost  say, 
with  disgust.  "We  responded  to  his  affection  with  gratitude 
which  sprang  from  our  hearts.  He  came  to  see  us  more  and 
more  frequently,  and  he  remained  a  long  time  at  each  visit. 
We  no  longer  jested  at  or  ridiculed  others.  Restored  to  my 
better  self,  I  let  him  see  to  the  depths  of  a  sensitive  nature, 
which  domestic  happiness  had  rendered  sympathetic.  In  my 
sorrow  and  deep  melancholy,  and  in  my  ignorance  of  all  that 
was  taking  place  outside,  I  led  him  into  regions  until  then 
unknown  to  him ;  their  discovery  seemed  to  give  him  plea- 
sure, and  by  degrees  I  might  say  what  I  chose  to  him.  He 
even  allowed  me  to  censure  and  judge  him  severely,  which  I 


THE  YOUTH  OF  M.  DE  TALLEYRAND.  609 

occasionally  did.  He  never  grew  angry  at  my  sincerity ;  and 
from  this  time  there  existed  between  us  a  friendship  very 
precious  to  both.  When  I  succeeded  in  awakening  any  emo- 
tion in  him,  I  was  as  much  elated  as  if  I  had  gained  a  vic- 
tory ;  and  he  was  grateful  to  me  for  having  stirred  his  soul, 
which  had  fallen  asleep  from  habit  or  through  indifference. 

On  one  occasion,  when,  impatient  at  his  inconsistency,  I 
went  so  far  as  to  say,  "  Good  heavens !  what  a  pity  it  is  that 
you  have  taken  such  pains  to  spoil  yourself,  for  I  can  not 
help  believing  that  the  real  you  is  better  than  you  are,"  he 
smiled  and  said :  "  Our  entire  life  is  influenced  by  the  manner 
in  which  we  pass  the  early  years  of  it ;  and,  were  I  to  tell 
you  how  my  youth  was  spent,  you  would  cease  to  wonder  at 
many  things  that  now  astonish  you." 

Then  he  told  me  that,  being  lame  and  the  eldest  of  his 
family,  and  having  by  this  accident  disappointed  the  hopes 
and  prevented  the  fulfillment  of  that  custom  which  before 
the  Revolution  destined  the  eldest  son  of  every  noble  family 
to  a  military  career,  he  had  been  discarded  from  his  home, 
and  sent  to  live  with  an  old  aunt  in  one  of  the  provinces. 
Without  returning  to  his  parents'  roof,  he  had  then  been 
placed  in  a  seminary,  and  it  was  intimated  to  him  that  he 
was  to  become  an  ecclesiastic — a  profession  for  which  he  had 
not  the  slightest  taste.  During  the  years  which  he  passed  at 
Saint  Sulpice,  he  was  almost  always  obliged  to  stay  in  his 
room  and  alone,  his  infirmity  rarely  permitting  him  to  remain 
long  standing,  or  to  take  part  in  the  active  amusements  of 
the  young.  He  then  fell  into  a  deep  melancholy,  formed  a 
low  opinion  of  social  life,  and  revolted  against  the  priestly 
state,  to  which  he  had  been  condemned  in  spite  of  himself. 
He  held  that  he  was  not  bound  scrupulously  to  observe  the 
duties  that  had  been  imposed  upon  him  without  his  consent. 
He  added  that  he  felt  a  profound  disgust  to  the  world,  and 
anger  at  its  prejudices,  and  that  he  only  avoided  falling  into 
despair  by  encouraging  in  himself  complete  indifference  to- 
ward all  men  and  all  things.  When  at  length  he  returned 


610  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

to  his  parents,  lie  was  received  by  them  with  the  greatest 
coldness,  and  as  if  he  were  displeasing  in  their  sight,  and  he 
never  had  a  word* of  consolation  or  kindness  addressed  to 
him.* 

"You  see,"  he  would  say  to  me,  "that  I  must  either 
have  died  of  grief,  or  become  callous  to  all  that  must  ever 
be  wanting  in  my  life.  I  chose  the  latter  alternative,  and  I 
am  now  willing  to  admit  to  you  that  I  was  wrong.  It  would 
have  been  better  to  have  resigned  myself  to  suffer,  and  to 
have  kept  alive  the  faculty  of  feeling  with  acuteness ;  for 
this  cold-heartedness,  with  which  you  reproach  me,  has  often 
disgusted  me  with  myself.  I  have  not  loved  others  enough, 
but  I  have  loved  myself  no  better.  I  have  never  taken  suffi- 
cient interest  in  myself. 

"  On  one  occasion  I  was  drawn  out  of  this  indifference 
by  my  love  for  the  Princess  Charlotte  de  Montmorency. 
She  was  much  attached  to  me,  and  I  rebelled  more  than 
ever  against  the  obstacle  which  prevented  my  marrying  her. 

"  I  made  several  efforts  to  get  a  dispensation  from  vows 
that  were  odious  to  me.  I  think  I  should  have  succeeded 
if  the  Revolution,  which  then  broke  out,  had  not  prevented 
the  Pope  from  granting  me  what  I  wished.  You  will  easily 

*  Among  the  anecdotes  of  the  youth  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  I  must  not  omit  to 
relate  one  which  I  heard  from  my  father,  who  evidently  heard  it  from  his 
mother.  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  studying  theology,  when,  coming  out  of  the 
church  of  Saint  Sulpice,  where  he  had  been  listening  to  a  sermon,  he  observed 
on  the  steps  a  pretty  young  woman,  elegantly  dressed.  It  was  raining,  and  she 
seemed  embarrassed.  He  offered  her  his  arm  and  one  of  those  little  umbrellas, 
the  very  reverse  of  ours,  that  were  then  beginning  to  be  fashionable.  She 
accepted  his  offer,  and  he  accompanied  her  home.  She  invited  him  to  call  on 
her,  and  they  became  acquainted.  The  lady  was  Mile.  Luzy,  who  was  studying 
to  join  the  Com6die  Fra^aise.  She  told  him  that  she  was  inclined  to  piety, 
that  she  had  no  taste  for  the  stage,  and  that,  against  her  will,  she  was  obliged 
by  her  parents  to  adopt  that  profession.  "That  is  just  my  own  case,"  he 
answered.  "  I  have  no  inclination  for  the  seminary  or  the  Church ;  my  parents 
are  forcing  me  into  it."  They  sympathized  with  each  other  on  this  subject,  and 
this  mutual  confidence  respecting  their  mistaken  vocations  created  a  tie  between 
them,  such  as  is  easily  formed  at  twenty  years  of  age. — P.  R. 


M.  DE  TALLEYRAND 8  NATURE.  611 

understand  that,  in  the  disposition  of  my  mind,  I  hailed  that 
Revolution  with  eagerness.  It  attacked  the  principles  and 
the  customs  of  which  I  had  been  a  victim ;  it  seemed  to  me 
just  what  I  wanted  to  break  my  chains,  and  so  in  every  way 
it  was  pleasing  to  me.  I  espoused  it  readily,  and,  since  then, 
events  have  disposed  of  me." 

When  M.  de  Talleyrand  spoke  to  me  in  this  manner,  I 
pitied  him  with  my  whole  heart,  because  I  fully  understood 
the  sad  influence  which  his  unhappy  youth  had  exercised 
over  all  the  rest  of  his  life ;  but  I  felt  persuaded,  too,  that  a 
more  vigorous  character  might  have  avoided  falling  into 
such  errors,  and  I  frankly  deplored  to  him  that  he  should 
have  so  stained  his  life. 

A  most  fatal  indifference  to  good  and  evil,  right  and 
wrong,  formed  the  basis  of  M.  de  Talleyrand's  nature ;  but 
we  must  do  him  the  justice  to  admit  that  he  never  sought  to 
make  a  principle  of  what  was  immoral.  He  is  aware  of  the 
worth  of  high  principle  in  others ;  he  praises  it,  holds  it  in 
esteem,  and  never  seeks  to  corrupt  it.  It  appears  to  me  that 
he  even  dwells  on  it  with  pleasure.  He  has  not,  like  Bona- 
parte, the  fatal  idea  that  virtue  has  no  existence,  and  that  the 
appearance  of  it  is  only  a  trick  or  an  affectation  the  more.  I 
have  often  heard  him  praise  actions  which  were  a  severe 
criticism  on  his  own.  His  conversation  is  never  immoral  or 
irreligious;  he  respects  good  priests,  and  applauds  them; 
there  is  in  his  heart  both  goodness  and  justice ;  but  he  does 
not  apply  to  himself  the  rule  by  which  he  judges  others. 
He  regards  himself  as  a  being  apart ;  all  things  are  different 
for  him.  He  has  long  been  llase  on  every  point,  and  he 
seeks  for  excitement  as  a  fastidious  palate  seeks  pungent 
food.  All  serious  reflections  applied  to  moral  or  natural 
sentiments  are  distasteful  to  him,  because  they  lead  him  into 
a  train  of  thought  which  he  fears,  and  from  which  he  tries 
to  escape  by  a  jest  or  a  sarcasm.  A  combination  of  circum- 
stances has  surrounded  him  with  persons  of  light  or  depraved 
character,  who  have  encouraged  him  in  a  thousand  follies. 


612  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  K&MUSAT. 

These  people  are  congenial  to  him,  because  they  draw  him 
away  from  his  own  thoughts;  but  they  can  not  save  him 
from  profound  weariness,  and  from  that  he  seeks  refuge  in 
great  affairs.  These  affairs  do  not  fatigue  him,  because  he 
rarely  enters  into  them  completely ;  indeed,  he  seldom  enters 
heart  and  soul  into  anything.  His  intellect  is  lofty,  and 
often  just ;  he  perceives  correctly  ;  but  he  has  a  certain  care- 
lessness and  desultoriness  about  him,  which  make  him  disap- 
point one's  hopes.  He  pleases  much,  but  satisfies  never,  and 
at  last  inspires  one  with  a  sort  of  pity,  which  leads,  if  one 
sees  much  of  him,  to  real  affection. 

I  believe  that  our  intimacy  did  him  good  while  it  lasted. 
I  succeeded  in  rousing  in  him  feelings  that  had  long  slum- 
bered, and  in  awakening  him  to  more  elevated  thoughts ;  I 
interested  him  in  many  subjects  that  were  new  to  him,  or 
which  he  had  forgotten.  To  me  he  owed  many  fresh  sym- 
pathies ;  he  owned  this,  and  was  grateful  for  it.  He  often 
sought  my  society,  and  I  appreciated  his  doing  so,  because  I 
never  flattered  his  weaknesses,  but  spoke  to  him  in  a  style 
that  he  had  not  been  accustomed  to. 

He  was  at  that  time  strongly  opposed  to  the  plots  that 
were  being  concocted  against  Spain.  The  truly  diabolical 
artifices  employed  by  the  Emperor,  if  they  did  not  offend 
his  moral  sense,  were  at  least  very  displeasing  to  that  good 
taste  which  M.  de  Talleyrand  displayed  in  political  as  well 
as  in  social  life.  He  foresaw  the  consequences,  and  prophe- 
sied to  me  what  they  would  be.  "  This  ill-advised  man,"  he 
said,  "  will  call  his  whole  position  in  question  again."  He 
was  always  anxious  that  war  should  be  frankly  declared 
against  the  King  of  Spain,  if  he  would  not  accede  to  what 
was  required  of  him ;  that  advantageous  conditions  should  be 
dictated  to  him ;  that  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  (Godoy)  should 
be  sent  away,  and  an  alliance  by  marriage  effected  with  the 
Infante  Ferdinand. 

But  the  Emperor  conceived  that  additional  security  would 
be  guaranteed  to  him  by  the  expulsion  of  the  house  of  Bour- 


FtiTES  AT  THE  TUILERIES.  613 

bon,  and  was  obstinate  in  his  views,  being  once  more  the 
dupe  of  the  schemers  by  whom  he  was  surrounded.  Murat 
and  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  flattered  themselves  with  the  hope 
of  gaining  two  thrones,  but  the  Emperor  had  no  notion  of 
giving  them  any  such  satisfaction.  He  deceived  them,  and 
believed  too  easily  in  their  readiness  to  facilitate  his  plans  in 
the  hope  of  securing  their  own.  Thus  every  one  in  this 
affair  overreached  every  one  else,  and  was  at  the  same  time 
deceived. 

The  winter  passed  brilliantly.  The  theatre  in  the  Tuile- 
ries  was  finished;  on  reception  days  theatrical  representa- 
tions were  given,  most  frequently  in  Italian,  and  sometimes 
in  French.  The  Court  attended  in  full  dress,  and  tickets 
for  the  upper  galleries  were  distributed  to  the  citizens.  We, 
too,  formed  a  spectacle  to  them.  Everybody  was  eager  to 
be  present  at  these  representations,  where  there  was  a  great 
display  of  splendor. 

Full-dress  and  masked  balls  were  given.  These  were 
novelties  to  the  Emperor,  and  he  liked  them.  Some  of  his 
Ministers,  his  sister,  Murat,  and  the  Prince  de  Neufchdtel, 
received  orders  to  invite  a  certain  number  of  persons  belong- 
ing to  the  Court  or  to  the  city.  The  men  wore  dominoes, 
the  women  elegant  costumes,  and  the  pleasure  of  being  dis- 
guised was  almost  the  only  one  they  enjoyed  in  these  assem- 
blies, where  it  was  known  that  the  Emperor  was  present, 
and  where  the  fear  of  meeting  him  made  the  guests  silent 
and  circumspect. 

He  was  closely  masked,  and  yet  easy  to  recognize  by  that 
peculiar  air  and  gait  which  he  could  not  disguise,  as  he 
walked  through  the  rooms,  generally  leaning  on  the  arm  of 
Duroc.  He  accosted  the  ladies  freely,  and  was  often  very 
unscrupulous  in  his  remarks  to  them ;  and,  if  he  was  an- 
swered, and  unable  at  once  to  recognize  who  it  was  that 
spoke  to  him,  he  would  pull  off  the  speaker's  mask,  reveal- 
ing himself  by  this  rude  act  of  power.  He  also  took  great 
pleasure,  under  cover  of  his  disguise,  in  seeking  out  certain 


614:  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

husbands  and  tormenting  them  with  anecdotes,  true  or  false, 
of  their  wives.  If  he  learned  afterward  that  these  revelations 
had  been  followed  by  unpleasant  consequences,  he  became 
very  angry ;  for  he  would  not  permit  the  displeasure  which 
he  had  himself  excited  to  be  independent  of  him.  It  must 
be  said,  because  it  is  the  truth,  that  there  is  in  Bonaparte  a 
natural  badness,  which  makes  him  like  to  do  evil  in  small  as 
well  as  in  great  things. 

In  the  midst  of  all  these  amusements  he  worked  hard, 
and  was  much  occupied  by  his  personal  strife  with  the  Eng- 
lish Government.  He  devised  various  methods  for  sustain- 
ing his  continental  policy.  He  flattered  himself  that,  by 
articles  in  the  newspapers,  he  could  subdue  the  discontent 
caused  by  the  increase  in  the  price  of  sugar  and  coffee,  and 
the  scarcity  of  English  merchandise.  He  encouraged  every 
new  invention,  and  believed  that  the  sugar  extracted  from 
beet-root  and  other  things  would  enable  us  to  dispense  with 
the  help  of  foreigners  in  certain  productions,  such  as  the 
making  of  colors.  He  caused  the  Minister  of  the  Interior  to 
address  a  public  report  to  him,  stating  that  he  had  obtained, 
through  the  Prefects,  letters  from  the  Chambers  of  Com- 
merce in  approbation  of  the  system,  which,  although  it 
might  involve  some  temporary  privations,  must  ultimately 
secure  the  freedom  of  the  seas. 

The  English  were  molested  everywhere.  They  were 
made  prisoners  at  Yerdun ;  their  property  was  confiscated  in 
Portugal ;  Prussia  was  forced  into  a  league  against  them ; 
and  the  King  of  Sweden  was  menaced  because  he  obstinately 
persisted  in  maintaining  his  alliance  with  them. 

The  cord  was  thus  tightened  at  both  ends  and  stretched 
to  its  utmost.  It  became  impossible  not  to  see  that  only  the 
ruin  of  one  or  the  other  of  the  contending  parties  could  ter- 
minate the  quarrel,  and  wise  people  became  profoundly  anx- 
ious. As,  however,  we  were  always  being  deceived,  we  re- 
garded the  journals  with  constant  distrust.  We  read  them, 
indeed,  but  without  believing  what  they  stated. 


THE  EMPEROR'S  RESPECT  FOR  ARTISTS.        615 

The  Emperor  exhausted  himself  in  writing,  but  he  did 
not  convince  us.  He  became  deeply  incensed  at  this  want 
of  confidence,  and  each  day  his  aversion  to  the  Parisians  in- 
creased. It  hurt  his  vanity  to  find  that  he  was  not  believed, 
and  the  exercise  of  his  power  was  incomplete  when  its  influ- 
ence could  not  be  extended  to  the  very  thoughts  of  the  people. 
In  order  to  please  him,  one  had  to  be  credulous.  "  You  like 
Berthier,"  said  M.  de  Talleyrand  to  Bonaparte,  "  because  he 
believes  in  you." 

Occasionally,  as  a  change  from  political  articles,  the 
newspapers  would  relate  the  daily  words  and  actions  of  the 
Emperor.  For  example,  we  were  told  how  he  had  gone  to 
see  the  picture  of  his  coronation  painted  by  David,  and  had 
much  admired  it,  and  how  he  had  surprised  the  painter  by 
his  acute  observations ;  also,  that  when  he  was  leaving  the 
studio  he  had  taken  off  his  hat  and  saluted  David,  in, proof 
of  "  the  sentiments  of  benevolence  which  he  bestowed  on  all 
artists" 

This  reminds  me  that  he  once  found  fault  with  M.  de 
Lucay,  one  of  the  Prefects  of  the  Palace,  who  had  the  super- 
intendence of  the  Opera,  with  being  too  distant  in  his  man- 
ner to  the  actors  who  went  to  him  on  business.  "  Are  you 
aware,"  he  said,  "  that  talent  of  any  kind  is  positive  power, 
and  that  even  I  take  off  my  hat  when  I  receive  Talma  ? " 
There  was,  no  doubt,  some  exaggeration  in  this  statement ; 
but  it  is  nevertheless  true  that  he  was  very  gracious  to  artists 
of  any  distinction,  that  he  encouraged  them  by  his  liberality 
and  his  praise;  provided,  however,  that  they  were  always 
willing  to  dedicate  their  art  to  his  praises,  or  to  the  further- 
ance of  his  projects ;  for  any  great  reputation  acquired  with- 
out his  concurrence  seemed  to  offend  him,  and  he  had  no 
sympathy  with  glory  that  he  had  not  bestowed.  He  perse- 
cuted Mme.  de  Stael  because  she  overstepped  the  line  he 
had  laid  down  for  her,  and  he  neglected  the  Abbe  Delille, 
who  lived  in  retirement  far  from  him. 

At  this  period  two  distinguished  artists,  Esmenard  and 


616  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Spontini,  produced  the  opera  entitled  "  La  Yestale,"  which 
had  an  immense  success.  The  Emperor — I  know  not  for 
what  reason — was  determined  to  prefer  the  French  music  of 
Lesueur,  the  author  of  "  Les  Bardes,"  and  was  greatly  dis- 
pleased with  the  Parisians  for  not  thinking  as  he  did  in  the 
matter.  He  thenceforth  cherished  a  prejudice  against  all 
Italian  music,  and  the  influence  of  this  was  felt  when  the 
distribution  of  the  decennial  prizes  took  place. 

On  the  21st  of  January,  1808,  the  assembled  Senate 
granted  a  levy  of  eighty  thousand  men  on  the  conscription 
of  1809.  Kegnault,  the  Councilor  of  State,  who  was,  as 
usual,  the  speaker  on  the  occasion,  argued  that  even  as  the 
preceding  levies  had  served  to  secure  the  continental  peace, 
so  this  one  would  at  length  obtain  for  us  the  freedom  of  the 
seas;  and  no  one  opposed  this  reasoning.  We  knew  that 
Senator  Languenais  and  some  others  occasionally  tried,  dur- 
ing the  Emperor's  reign,  to  make  certain  representations  to 
the  Senate  on  the  subject  of  these  severe  and  numerous 
levies ;  but  their  observations  dispersed  themselves  in  the 
air  of  the  senatorial  palace,  and  effected  no  change  in  deci- 
sions which  had  been  arrived  at  beforehand.  The  Senate 
was  timid  and  submissive ;  it  inspired  no  confidence  in  the 
national  mind,  and  had  even  come  by  degrees  to  be  regarded 
with  a  sort  of  contempt.  Men  are  severe  toward  their  fel- 
lows ;  they  do  not  pardon  each  other's  weaknesses,  and  they 
applaud  virtues  of  which  they  themselves  are  seldom  ca- 
pable. In  short,  whatever  tyranny  may  be  exercised,  public 
opinion  is  more  or  less  avenged,  because  it  is  invariably 
heard.  No  despot  is  ignorant  of  the  feelings  which  he  in- 
spires and  the  condemnation  which  he  excites.  Bonaparte 
knew  perfectly  well  how  he  stood  in  the  estimation  of  the 
French  nation,  for  good  or  evil,  but  he  imagined  that  he 
could  override  everything. 

In  the  report  made  to  him  by  his  Minister  of  War,  Gen- 
eral Clarke,  on  the  occasion  of  the  fresh  levies,  we  find 
these  words :  "  A  vulgar  policy  would  be  a  calamity  for 


TEE  EMPERORS  OPINION  OF  ENGLAND.        617 

France ;  it  would  hinder  those  great  results  which  you  have 
prepared."  No  one  was  duped  by  this  formula.  The  ques- 
tion in  the  comedy,  "  Qui  est  ce  done  qiCon  trompe  id  f  " 
was  appropriate  to  the  occasion ;  but  everybody  kept  silence, 
and  that  was  enough  for  Napoleon.  Shortly  after,  the  towns 
of  Kehl,  Cassel,  Wesel,  and  Flushing  were  united  to  the 
Empire,  being  regarded  as  keys  which  it  was  necessary  we 
should  hold  in  our  hands.  At  Antwerp  great  works  were 
carried  on,  and  all  was  stir  and  activity. 

When  the  English  Parliament  opened,  the  Emperor  evi- 
dently hoped  for  a  disagreement  between  the  English  Gov- 
ernment and  the  nation.  There  was  a  great  deal  of  sharp 
dissension,  and  the  Opposition  declaimed  in  its  usual  style. 
The  Emperor  helped  it  with  all  his  might.  The  tone  of  the 
notes  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  was  very  violent ;  certain  English 
journalists  were  subsidized,  and  there  is  no  doubt  Bonaparte 
flattered  himself  that  he  would  be  able  to  bring  about  a 
revolt.  But  the  English  Ministry  was  pursuing  a  course 
which,  though  difficult,  was  honorable  to  the  country,  and  it 
had  a  majority  at  every  vote.  The  Emperor  was  incensed, 
and  declared  that  he  "  could  not  understand  that  form  of 
liberal  government  in  which  the  voice  of  the  popular  party 
never  had  any  weight."  Sometimes  he  would  say,  with  a 
sort  of  paradoxical  audacity  :  "  In  reality,  there  is  more  lib- 
erty in  France  than  in  England,  because  nothing  can  be 
worse  for  a  nation  than  the  power  of  expressing  its  will 
without  being  listened  to.  "When  all  is  said,  that  is  the 
merest  farce,  a  vain  semblance  of  liberty.  As  for  me,  it  is 
not  the  case  that  the  true  state  of  France  is  kept  from  me. 
I  know  everything,  for  I  have  exact  reports,  and  I  would 
not  be  so  mad  as  to  venture  on  doing  anything  in  direct  op- 
position to  French  interests  or  to  the  French  character.  In- 
telligence of  all  kinds  comes  to  me  as  to  a  common  center, 
and  I  act  in  accordance  with  it ;  whereas  our  neighbors 
never  depart  from  their  national  system,  maintaining  the 
oligarchy  at  any  price ;  and  in  this  age  men  are  more  ready 


618  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

to  accept  the  authority  of  one  able  and  absolute  man  than 
the  humiliating  power  of  an  effete  nobility." 

When  Bonaparte  talked  thus,  it  was  hard  to  know  whether 
he  was  trying  to  deceive  others  or  to  deceive  himself.  Was 
it  that  his  imagination,  which  was  naturally  lively,  exerted 
its  influence  over  his  intellect,  which  was  generally  mathe- 
matical ?  Did  the  lassitude  and  inaction  of  the  nation  de- 
ceive him  ?  Was  he  trying  to  persuade  himself  that  what 
he  desired  was  the  case  \  We  have  often  thought  that  he 
forced  himself  to  do  this,  and  that  he  sometimes  succeeded. 

Besides,  as  I  have  already  said,  Bonaparte  always  believed 
that  he  was  acting  in  conformity  with  the  spirit  of  the  Revo- 
lution, by  attacking  what  he  called  oligarchs.  At  every  turn 
he  would  insist  upon  equality,  which  in  his  mouth  meant 
leveling.  Leveling  is  to  equality  exactly  what  despotism  is 
to  liberty ;  for  it  crushes  those  faculties  and  neutralizes  those 
situations  to  which  equality  opens  a  career.  The  aristocracy 
of  classes  levels,  in  fact,  all  that  exists  outside  those  privi- 
leged classes,  by  reducing  strength  to  the  condition  of  weak- 
ness, and  merit  to  the  condition  of  mediocrity.  True  equal- 
ity, on  the  contrary,  by  permitting  each  to  be  that  which  he 
is,  and  to  rise  as  high  as  he  can,  utilizes  every  faculty  and 
all  legitimate  influence.  It  also  forms  an  aristocracy,  not  of 
class,  but  of  individuals — an  aristocracy  which  draws  into  it 
all  who  deserve  to  form  a  portion  of  it. 

The  Emperor  felt  this  distinction,  and,  notwithstanding 
his  nobles,  his  decorations,  his  senatorships,  and  all  his  fine 
talk,  his  system  tended  solely  to  base  his  absolute  power 
upon  a  vast  democracy,  also  of  the  leveling  order,  with 
political  rights  which,  although  they  had  the  appearance  of 
being  accorded  to  all,  were  in  reality  within  the  reach  of 
none. 

Toward  the  beginning  of  February  the  marriage  of  Mile, 
de  Tascher,  Mme.  Bonaparte's  cousin,  was  solemnized.  She 
was  raised  to  the  rank  of  Princess,  and  her  husband's  rela- 
tives were  in  the  greatest  delight,  and  remarkably  obsequious 


COUNT  ROMANZOFF.  619 

on  the  occasion.  They  flattered  themselves  that  they  would 
be  exalted  to  a  great  position ;  but  the  divorce  undeceived 
the  D'Arenberg  family,  and  they  quarreled  with  the  young 
Princess,  who  had  not  brought  them  quite  so  much  as  they 
expected. 

At  this  time  Count  Komanzoff,  the  Eussian  Minister  of 
Foreign  Affairs,  arrived  in  Paris.  He  was  a  man  of  knowl- 
edge and  of  sense,  and  he  came  there  full  of  admiration  for 
the  Emperor,  and  affected  by  the  genuine  enthusiasm  that 
his  own  young  sovereign  felt  for  Napoleon.  He  was,  however, 
sufficiently  master  of  himself  to  observe  the  Emperor  with 
close  attention.  He  perceived  the  constraint  of  the  Parisians, 
who  looked  on  at  all  the  glory  of  the  army  without  appropri- 
ating it  to  themselves.  He  was  struck  with  certain  remark- 
able disparities,  and  he  formed  a  modified  judgment  which, 
no  doubt,  had  afterward  some  influence  on  the  Czar.  The 
Emperor  said  to  him  on  one  occasion,  "  How  do  you  consider 
that  I  govern  the  French?"  "Sire,"  he  replied,  "a  little 
too  seriously." 

Bonaparte,  with  the  aid  of  a  senatua  consultum,  created 
a  new  "  grand  dignity  of  the  Empire,"  under  the  title  of 
"  Governor-General  beyond  the  Alps  "  ;  and  he  conferred  this 
dignity  on  Prince  Borghese,  who  was  sent  to  Turin  with  his 
wife.  The  Prince  was  obliged  to  sell  the  finest  statues  in  the 
Yilla  Borghese  to  the  Emperor,  and  they  were  placed  in  our 
Museum.  This  collection  of  all  the  masterpieces  that  Eu- 
rope had  possessed  was  superb.  They  were  grouped  in  the 
Louvre  with  the  greatest  care  and  elegance,  and  that  was  a 
conquest  of  a  kind  which  appealed  eloquently  to  French 
vanity  and  French  taste. 

Bonaparte  had  a  report  made  to  him,  in  a  sitting  of  the 
Council  of  State,  upon  the  progress  of  science,  letters,  and 
art  since  1789,  by  a  deputation,  at  the  head  of  which  was 
M.  de  Bougainville.  After  the  report  had  been  read,  he  re- 
plied in  these  terms :  "  I  have  heard  you  upon  the  progress 
of  the  human  mind  in  these  latter  days,  in  order  that  what 


MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

you  say  to  me  may  be  heard  by  all  nations,  and  may  silence 
the  detractors  of  our  age,  who  are  endeavoring  to  force  the 
human  mind  to  retrograde,  and  who  seem  to  aim  at  its  ex- 
tinction, I  desired  to  know  what  remains  for  me  to  do  for 
the  encouragement  of  your  labors,  in  order  to  console  myself 
for  being  unable  to  contribute  otherwise  to  their  success. 
The  welfare  of  my  people  and  the  glory  of  my  throne  are 
equally  interested  in  the  prosperity  of  the  sciences.  My 
Minister  of  the  Interior  shall  make  me  a  report  upon  all 
your  demands ;  you  may  confidently  count  upon  my  protec- 
tion." Thus  did  the  Emperor  occupy  himself  with  every- 
thing at  the  same  time,  and  thus  ably  did  he  associate  all 
that  was  illustrious  with  the  eclat  and  the  grandeur  of  his 
reign. 

I  have  already  said  that  he  was  desirous  of  founding 
families  which  should  perpetuate  the  remembrance  of  the 
dignities  that  he  had  accorded  to  those  whom  he  favored. 
He  was  greatly  annoyed  at  the  resistance  he  had  met  with  from 
M.  de  Caulaincourt,  who  had  gone  away  to  Kussia,  declaring 

very  positively  that,  as  he  could  not  marry  Mme.  de ,  he 

would  never  marry. 

The  Emperor  did  his  best  to  overcome  the  opposition 
which  he  also  encountered  from  the  man  for  whom  he  cared 
most — Marshal  Berthier,  Prince  de  Neufchdtel.  Berthier 
had  been  for  many  years  deeply  attached  to  an  Italian  lady, 
who,  although  she  was  nearer  fifty  than  forty,  was  still  re- 
markably beautiful.  She  exercised  supreme  influence  over 
him,  even  to  the  extent  of  making  him  pardon  several  acts 
of  levity  which  she  did  not  hesitate  to  indulge  in  before  his 
eyes.  These  she  represented  in  any  colors  which  she  chose, 
and  he  forgave  them. 

Marshal  Berthier,  who  was  importuned  on  this  point  by 
the  Emperor,  would  often  entreat  his  master  to  spare  him 
with  respect  to  this  cherished  weakness,  for  the  sake  of  his 
fidelity ;  and  Bonaparte  would  laugh  at  him,  get  angry,  re- 
turn to  the  charge,  but  could  never  conquer  his  resistance. 


MARRIAGE  OF  MARSHAL  BERTHIER.  621 

This  went  on  for  years ;  but  at  length,  by  dint  of  talking 
and  urgency,  he  carried  his  point,  and  Berthier,  although  he 
shed  bitter  tears  on  the  occasion,  consented  to  marry  a  prin- 
cess of  the  house  of  Bavaria.*  The  Princess  Marie  was 
brought  to  Paris,  and  the  marriage  was  solemnized  in  the 
presence  of  the  Emperor  and  Empress.  Berthier's  bride  was 
by  no  means  handsome,  or  calculated  to  make  her  husband 
forget  the  sentiments  which  he  had  cherished  for  so  long ; 
and,  indeed,  his  passion  for  the  Italian  lady  ended  only  with 
his  life.  The  Princess  was  an  excellent  person,  but  in  no 
way  remarkable.  She  was  liked  at  the  French  Court,  and 
she  was  always  of  the  opinion  that  she  had  made  a  good 
marriage.  The  Prince  de  Neuf chatel,  who  was  largely  en- 
dowed with  gifts  by  the  Emperor,  possessed  an  immense 
revenue,  and  the  household  of  three  lived  on  the  best  possi- 
ble terms.  After  the  Restoration  they  lived  in  Paris.  The 
Marshal,  who  was  ill  with  fever  when  Bonaparte  returned 
from  Elba  on  the  20th  of  March,  1815,  was  so  terrified  by 
that  event  that  he  lost  his  senses,  and  either  threw  himself 
or  fell  out  of  a  window, f  and  was  killed.  He  left  two  sons. 
The  Princess  remained  in  Paris,  and  the  fair  Italian  keeps 
up  her  former  relations  with  her.  J 

At  this  time  the  Emperor  showed  more  plainly  than  ever 
what  a  monarchical  turn  his  ideas  were  taking,  by  founding 
the  institution  of  the  "  Majorats."  That  institution  was  ap- 
proved by  many,  blamed  by  others,  envied  by  a  certain  class, 

*  The  Princess  Marie  Elizabeth  was  a  daughter  of  the  Duke  of  Bavaria- 
Birkenfeld. 

f  The  King  had  made  him  captain  of  one  of  his  companies  of  the  body- 
guard.  Berthier  had  followed  him  to  Ghent. 

t  The  death  of  the  Prince  de  Neufchatel  is  surrounded  by  tragic  and  myste- 
rious circumstances.  Some  persons  assert  that  he  threw  himself  out  of  a  win- 
dow during  an  attack  of  fever ;  others,  that  he  was  assassinated  and  thrown  into 
the  street  by  a  gang  of  masked  men.  He  had  been  one  of  the  first  among  the 
Marshals  to  abandon  the  Emperor,  and  had  recognized  the  new  Government 
even  before  the  abdication  at  Fontainebleau.  The  Due  de  Rovigo  accuses  him 
in  his  Memoirs  of  having  formed  a  plot  against  the  life  of  the  Emperor. 


622  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

and  readily  adopted  by  many  families,  who  welcomed  this 
opportunity  of  conferring  importance  on  their  eldest  sons 
and  perpetuating  their  name.  The  Arch-Chancellor  carried 
the  decree  to  the  Senate,  and  represented  in  his  speech  that 
hereditary  distinctions  were  of  the  essence  of  monarchy,  that 
they  kept  alive  what  is  in  France  called  honor,  and  that  our 
national  character  should  lead  us  to  approve  them.  He  then 
proceeded  to  pacify  the  men  of  the  Kevolution  by  adding 
that  all  citizens  would  be  none  the  less  equal  before  the  law, 
and  that  distinctions  impartially  accorded  to  all  who  merited 
them  ought  to  stimulate  the  zeal  of  all  without  exciting  the 
jealousy  of  any.  The  Senate  received  all  this  with  its  ordi- 
nary approbation,  and  -  voted  an  address  of  thanks  and  admi- 
ration to  the  Emperor. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  warmly  praised  this  new  institution. 
He  could  not  understand  a  monarchy  without  a  nobility.  A 
council  was  created  to  superintend  the  administration  of  the 
.laws  by  which  the  foundation  of  a  Majorat  was  to  be  ob- 
tained. M.  de  Pasquier,  chief  Master  of  Requests,  was 
named  Procurator-General ;  titles  were  granted  to  those  who 
held  great  offices  in  the  state.  This  was  at  first  ridiculed, 
because  certain  names  allied  themselves  oddly  enough  to  the 
title  of  Count  or  Baron ;  but  the  public  soon  got  accustomed 
to  it,  and,  as  all  hoped  to  arrive  at  some  distinction,  they  tol- 
erated and  even  approved  the  new  system. 

The  Emperor  was  ingenious  in  his  method  of  demonstrat- 
ing to  all  parties  how  entirely  they  ought  to  approve  of  these 
creations.  "  I  am  securing  the  Revolution,"  said  he  to  one 
party ;  "  this  'intermediate  class  which  I  am'  founding  is  emi- 
nently democratic,  for  everybody  is  called  to  it."  "  It  will 
support  the  throne,"  said  he  to  the  grands  seigneurs.  Then 
he  added,  turning  toward  those  who  wanted  a  modified  mon- 
archy :  "  It  will  oppose  itself  to  the  encroachments  of  abso- 
lute authority,  because  it  will  itself  be  a  power  in  the  state." 
To  genuine  Jacobins  he  said,  "You  ought  to  rejoice,  for 
here  is  the  old  noblesse  finally  annihilated  "  ;  and  to  that  old 


THE  UNIVERSITY.  623 

noblesse  he  said,  "  By  arraying  yourselves  in  new  dignities, 
you  resuscitate  yourselves  and  perpetuate  your  ancient  rights." 
We  listened  to  him ;  we  wished  to  believe  him ;  and,  besides, 
he  did  not  give  us  much  time  to  reflect — he  carried  us  away 
in  the  whirlwind  of  contradictions  of  every  kind.  He  even 
imposed  his  benefits  by  force  when  it  was  necessary ;  and 
this  was  an  adroitness  the  more,  for  there  were  people  who 
wanted  to  be  forced  to  accept. 

Another  institution  which  seemed  really  grand  and  im- 
posing succeeded  this  one.  I  allude  to  the  University.  Pub- 
lic instruction  was  concentrated  in  a  clear  and  comprehen- 
sive system,  and  it  was  admitted  that  the  decree  was  very 
nobly  conceived. 

intimately,  however,  that  which  happened  to  everything 
else  happened  to  the  University ;  Bonaparte's  own  despotic 
disposition  took  fright  at  the  powers  which  he  had  accorded, 
because  they  might  possibly  become  obstacles  to  certain  of 
his  desires.  The  Minister  of  the  Interior,  the  Prefect,  the 
general  administration — that  is  to  say,  the  absolute  system — 
mixed  itself  up  with  the  operations  which  the  University 
corps  were  attempting,  contradicted  them,  and  overruled 
them  when  they  indicated  the  very  least  traces  of  inde- 
pendence. In  this  respect  also  we  present  the  spectacle 
rather  of  a  fine  facade  than  of  a  solid  building. 

M.  de  Fontanes  was  nominated  Grand  Master  of  the  Uni- 
versity. This  choice,  which  was  also  generally  approved,  suit- 
ed the  purpose  of  the  master,  who  was  so  jealous  of  preserv- 
ing his  daily  and  hourly  authority  over  men  and  things.  M. 
de  Fontanes,  whose  noble  intellect  and  reputation  for  perfect 
taste  had  procured  him  a  very  distinguished  position,  injured 
these  qualities  by  carelessness  and  inertness,  which  rendered 
him  incapable  of  making  a  stand  when  it  was  necessary.  I 
must  place  him  also,  I  fear,  among  the  fine  facades. 

Nevertheless,  something  was  gained  by  this  creation ;  or- 
der was  restored  to  education,  the  scope  of  study  was  extend- 
ed, and  young  people  were  occupied.  It  has  been  said  that 
45 


624  MEMOIRS   OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

under  the  Empire  education  at  the  Lycees  was  entirely  mili- 
tary, but  that  was  not  the  case.  Letters  were  carefully  cul- 
tivated, sound  morals  were  inculcated,  and  strict  surveillance 
was  practiced.  The  system  of  education  was,  however,  nei- 
ther sufficiently  religious  nor  sufficiently  national,  and  the 
time  had  come  when  it  was  necessary  that  it  should  be  both 
one  and  the  other.  No  effort  was  made  to  impart  to  young 
people  that  moral  and  political  knowledge  which  trains  citi- 
zens, and  prepares  them  to  take  their  part  in  the  labors  of 
their  Government.  They  were  obliged  to  attend  the  schools, 
but  nobody  spoke  to  them  of  their  religion ;  they  heard  much 
more  about  the  Emperor  than  they  heard  about  the  state, 
and  they  were  incited  to  a  desire  for  military  fame.  Yet, 
notwithstanding  these  drawbacks,  and  although  the  youth  of 
the  French  nation  is  not  all  that  it  ought  to  be,  it  has  been 
developed  to  a  remarkable  extent,  and  a  great  difference  may 
be  discerned  between  those  who  have  availed  themselves  of 
the  public  education  offered  to  all  and  those  who  have  held 
aloof  from  it.  Mistrust,  party  spirit,  and  a  sort  of  general 
misgiving  induced  the  old  French  nobility  and  a  portion  of 
the  wealthy  class  to  keep  their  children  with  themselves,  and 
to  rear  them  in  a  number  of  prejudices,  for  which  they  are 
now  suffering.  The  pupils  of  the  Lycees  acquired  a  superi- 
ority by  their  public  education,  which  it  would  now  be  vain 
to  dispute. 

The  decree  which  created  the  University,  after  having 
regulated  the  functions  of  those  who  were  to  compose  it, 
fixed  their  salaries  at  high  rates.  The  officials  were  given  a 
handsome  costume  and  an  imposing  organisation.  After  the 
Grand  Master  (the  Bishop  of  Bazas)  came  M.  de  Yillaret  as 
Chancellor.  M.  Delambre,  permanent  secretary  of  the  first 
class  of  the  Institute,  who  was  held  in  high  consideration, 
both  for  his  learning  and  character,  was  Treasurer.  The 
Council  of  the  University  was  composed  of  distinguished 
men ;  the  names  of  M.  de  Beausset,  formerly  Bishop  of  Alais, 
and  now  Cardinal,  of  M.  Cuvier,  M.  de  Bonald,  M.  de  Frays- 


THE  EMPEROR  AND  THE  PARISIANS.  625 

sinous,  Koyer-Collard,  etc.,  were  included  in  the  number. 
The  professors  were  chosen  with  great  care.  In  short,  this 
creation  met  with  universal  approbation ;  but  ensuing  events 
hindered  its  action  in  the  first  place,  and  afterward  disorgan- 
ized it  like  all  the  rest. 

On  the  23d  of  March,  1808,  the  Court  went  to  Saint 
Cloud.  The  Emperor  always  left  Paris  as  soon  as  he  could : 
he  disliked  living  at  the  Tuileries,  because  of  the  impossibil- 
ity of  walking  about  there  freely ;  and  then,  the  greater  his 
power  and  splendor  became,  the  more  ill  at  ease  he  found 
himself  in  the  presence  of  the  Parisians.  He  could  not  en- 
dure any  restraint,  and  he  knew  that  in  the  city  people  were 
aware  of  the  language  which  he  was  in  the  habit  of  using, 
and  the  violence  to  which  he  gave  way.  He  excited  curios- 
ity, which  annoyed  him  ;  he  was  coldly  received  in  public ;  a 
number  of  stories  about  him  got  into  circulation ;  in  short, 
he  was  obliged  to  put  some  constraint  upon  himself.  Thus 
his  sojourns  in  Paris  became  more  and  more  brief,  and  he 
began  to  talk  of  inhabiting  Versailles.  The  restoration  of 
the  palace  was  decided  upon,  and  Bonaparte  observed  more 
than  once  that  in  reality  he  had  no  occasion  to  be  in  Paris, 
except  during  the  session  of  the  Corps  Legislatif.  When 
he  rode  or  drove  to  any  distance  from  the  town,  he  used 
to  say,  as  he  approached  it  on  his  return,  "  Here  we  are 
again,  in  the  great  Babylon."  He  even  formed  plans  for  the 
transplantation  of  the  capital  to  Lyons.  It  was  only  in 
imagination  that  he  contemplated  such  a  displacement,  but 
he  took  pleasure  in  the  idea,  and  it  was  one  of  his  favorite 
dreams. 

The  Parisians  were  perfectly  well  aware  that  Bonaparte 
did  not  like  them,  and  they  avenged  themselves  by  sarcastic 
jests  and  anecdotes,  which  were  for  the  most  part  pure  in- 
ventions. They  were  submissive  to  him,  but  cold  and  satiri- 
cal. His  courtiers  adopted  the  antipathy  of  their  master, 
and  never  spoke  of  Paris  without  some  disparaging  epithet. 
More  than  once  I  have  heard  the  Emperor  say,  moodily, 


626  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

"  They  have  not  yet  pardoned  me  for  pointing  my  guns 
upon  them  on  the  13th  Yendemiaire." 

ATI  authentic  collection  of  the  observations  that  Bona- 
parte made  upon  his  own  conduct  would  be  a  very  useful 
book  to  many  sovereigns,  and  to  their  advisers.  When  at 
the  present  time  (I  write  in  1819)  I  hear  people,  who  seem 
to  me  to  be  mere  novices  in  the  art  of  governing  men,  affirm 
that  nothing  is  so  easy  as  to  impose  one's  will  by  force,  and 
that  by  trusting  to  the  bayonet  one  may  constrain  a  nation 
to  endure  any  regime  which  may  be  inflicted  upon  it,  I  recall 
what  the  Emperor  used  to  say  about  the  difficulties  which 
had  arisen  from  his  first  steps  in  his  political  career,  the 
complications  produced  by  the  employment  of  force  against 
the  citizens,  which  beset  him  from  the  very  day  after  that 
on  which  he  had  been  obliged  to  avail  himself  of  so  terrible 
a  resource. 

I  have  heard  his  Ministers  say  that,  when  any  violent 
measure  was  proposed  in  the  Council,  he  would  put  the 
question,  "  Can  you  answer  for  it  that  the  people  will  not 
rise  ? "  and  that  the  smallest  popular  movement  always  ap- 
peared to  him  grave  and  ominous.  I  have  seen  him  take 
pleasure  in  describing,  or  in  listening  to  a  description  of,  the 
various  emotions  that  are  experienced  upon  the  field  of  battle, 
and  turn  pale  at  a  narrative  of  the  excesses  of  a  people  in 
revolt ;  and,  if,  when  riding  through  the  streets  of  Paris  on 
horseback,  a  workman  threw  himself  in  his  way  to  implore 
some  favor,  Bonaparte's  first  movement  was  always  to  shud- 
der and  recoil. 

The  generals  of  the  Guard  had  strict  orders  to  prevent 
contact  between  the  people  and  the  soldiery.  "  I  could  not," 
said  Bonaparte,  "  take  the  part  of  the  latter."  If  any  quar- 
rel took  place  between  soldiers  and  citizens,  the  soldiers  were 
invariably  punished  and  sent  away.  It  is  true  they  after- 
ward received  compensation  money,  which  quieted  them. 

All  this  time  the  north  of  Europe  was  in  a  state  of  agita- 
tion. The  King  of  Sweden  was  too  faithful  to  the  policy 


AN  IMPENDING  STORM.  627 

imposed  upon  him  by  the  English  Government  for  the  inter- 
ests of  his  subjects.  He  excited  increasing  discontent  among 
the  Swedes,  and  his  conduct  bore  witness  to  the  condition  of 
his  brain.  The  Emperor  of  Russia  having  declared  war 
against  him,  and  having  at  the  same  time  commenced  an 
expedition  to  Finland,  M.  d'Alopeus,  the  Eussian  ambassa- 
dor at  Stockholm,  was  placed  under  arrest  in  his  own  house, 
contrary  to  all  the  rights  of  nations. 

On  this  occasion  the  notes  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  were  elo- 
quent indeed.  One  of  them  was  as  follows :  "  Poor  Swed- 
ish nation,  into  what  hands  have  you  fallen  ?  Your  Charles 
XII.  was,  no  doubt,  a  little  mad,  but  he  was  brave ;  and 
your  King,  who  went  to  play  braggart  in  Pomerania  while 
the  armistice  existed,  was  the  first  to  run  away  when  the 
same  armistice,  which  he  broke,  had  expired."  Such  lan- 
guage as  this  could  only  announce  an  impending  storm. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  month  of  March  the  King  of 
Denmark,  Christian  VII.,  died ;  and  his  son,  who  had  long 
been  Eegent,  ascended  the  throne  under  the  title  of  Fred- 
erick V.,  in  the  fortieth  year  of  his  age. 

It  is  remarkable  that,  at  a  period  when  the  troubled  na- 
tions seemed  to  have  need  of  sovereigns  of  more  than  ordi- 
nary intelligence  and  wisdom,  several  of  the  thrones  of  Eu- 
rope were  filled  by  princes  who  had  but  little  use  of  reason, 
and  in  some  instances  had  none  at  all.  Among  those  unfor- 
tunate sovereigns  were  the  Kings  of  England,  Sweden,  and 
Denmark,  and  the  Queen  of  Portugal. 

Popular  discontent  manifested  itself  on  the  occasion  of 
the  arrest  of  the  Russian  ambassador  at  Stockholm.  The 
King  left  that  city  and  retired  to  the  Castle  of  Gripsholm, 
from  which  he  issued  orders  for  war,  either  against  the  Rus- 
sians or  against  the  Danes. 

All  eyes  were,  however,  soon  turned  away  from  what 
was  passing  in  the  north,  to  fix  themselves  upon  the  drama 
which  was  beginning  in  Spain.  The  Grand  Duke  of  Berg 
had  been  sent  to  take  the  command  of  our  army  on  the 


628  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

banks  of  the  Ebro.  The  King  of  Spain,  who  was  feeble, 
timid,  and  ruled  by  his  Minister,  made  no  opposition  to  the 
passage  of  the  foreign  troops  through  his  country,  toward 
Portugal  as  it  was  represented.  The  national  party  of  the 
Spaniards,  at  whose  head  was  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias, 
were  incensed  at  this  invasion,  for  they  discerned  its  conse- 
quences. They  saw  that  they  were  sacrificed  to  the  ambi- 
tion of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace.  A  revolt  against  that 
Minister  broke  out ;  the  King  and  Queen  were  attacked,  and 
prepared  to  quit  Spain.  This  was  what  the  Emperor  want- 
ed, for  he  was  bent  upon  dethroning  the  Prince  of  the  Astu- 
rias afterward,  and  believed  that  he  should  easily  succeed  in 
doing  so.  I  have  already  said  that  the  Prince  of  the  Peace, 
won  by  the  promises  that  had  been  made  to  him,  had  de- 
voted himself  to  the  policy  of  the  Emperor,  who  began  by 
making  the  tremendous  mistake  of  introducing  French  influ- 
ence into  Spain  under  the  auspices  of  a  detested  Minister. 

Meanwhile  the  people  of  Madrid  flocked  to  Aranjuez, 
and  sacked  the  palace  of  the  Minister,  who  was  obliged  to 
hide  himself  to  escape  the  fury  of  the  mob.  The  King  and 
Queen,  greatly  alarmed  at  the  danger  of  their  favorite,  and 
almost  equally  grieved,  were  forced  to  demand  that  he 
should  resign ;  and  on  the  16th  of  March,  1808,  the  King, 
yielding  to  pressure  from  all  sides,  abdicated  in  favor  of  his 
son,  announcing  that  his  health  compelled  him  to  seek  a 
better  climate.  This  act  of  weakness  checked  the  revolt. 
The  Prince  of  the  Asturias  took  the  name  of  Ferdinand 
YIL,  and  his  first  act  of  authority  was  to  confiscate  the 
property  of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace.  But  he  had  not  suffi- 
cient strength  of  character  to  profit  fully  by  the  new  situa- 
tion. He  was  frightened  by  his  rupture  with  his  father,  and 
hesitated  at  the  moment  when  he  ought  to  have  acted.  On 
the  other  hand,  the  King  and  Queen  played  the  game  of  the 
Emperor  by  calling  the  French  army  to  their  aid.  The 
Grand  Duke  of  Berg  joined  them  at  Aranjuez,  and  prom- 
ised them  his  dangerous  assistance.  The  vacillation  of  the 


AFFAIRS  OF  SPAIN.  629 

authorities,  the  fear  inspired  by  our  arms,  the  intrigues  of 
the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  the  severe  and  imperious  measures 
of  Murat,  all  combined  to  produce  trouble  and  disorder  in 
Spain;  and  the  unfortunate  reigning  family  speedily  per- 
ceived that  this  disorganization  was  about  to  turn  to  the 
advantage  of  the  armed  mediator,  who  assumed  the  posi- 
tion of  a  judge.  The  "  Moniteur  "  gave  an  account  of  these 
events,  deploring  the  misfortune  of  King  Charles  IY. ;  and 
a  few  days  later  the  Emperor,  accompanied  by  a  brilliant 
Court,  left  Saint  Cloud,  under  the  pretext  of  making  a  jour- 
ney into  the  south  of  France. 

I  shall  give  the  details  of  all  these  events  when  I  reach 
the  fourth  epoch  of  these  Memoirs.  We  were  in  the  dark 
about  them  at  the  time  of  their  occurrence.  We  asked  our- 
selves, what  was  the  Emperor  going  to  do  ?  Was  this  new 
journey  an  invasion  2  All  these  secret  intrigues,  to  which 
we  had  no  clew,  excited  our  attention  and  curiosity,  and  the 
public  disquiet  increased  daily. 

M.  de  Talleyrand,  whom  I  saw  frequently,  was  exceed- 
ingly dissatisfied,  and  openly  blamed  all  that  was  done  and 
was  about  to  be  done.  He  denounced  Murat,  declaring  that 
there  was  perfidy  somewhere,  but  that  he  was  not  mixed  up 
with  it,  and  repeating  that  had  he  been  Minister  of  Foreign 
Affairs  he  would  never  have  lent  his  name  to  such  devices. 
The  Emperor  was  exceedingly  angry  at  this  freely  expressed 
condemnation.  He  saw  that  approbation  of  a  new  kind  was 
felt  for  M.  de  Talleyrand ;  he  listened  to  denunciations  of 
his  Minister,  and  their  friendship  was  interrupted.  He  has 
frequently  asserted  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  advised  this  Span- 
ish affair,  and  only  attempted  to  get  out  of  it  when  he  per- 
ceived that  it  was  a  failure.  I  can  bear  witness  to  the  fact 
that  M.  de  Talleyrand  severely  condemned  it  at  the  period 
of  which  I  am  writing,  and  expressed  himself  with  so  much 
vehemence  against  such  a  violation  of  all  the  rights  of  na- 
tions that  I  had  to  advise  him  to  moderate  his  language. 
What  he  would  have  advised  I  can  not  say,  because  he  never 


630  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

explained  himself  on  that  point,  and  I  have  now  stated  all 
that  I  know.  It  is,  however,  certain  that  the  public  were 
with  him  at  this  time,  and  declared  for  him  because  he  did 
not  dissemble  his  dissatisfaction.  "This,"  he  said,  "is  a 
base  intrigue.  It  is  an  enterprise  against  a  national  aspira- 
tion ;  we  declare  ourselves  thereby  the  enemy  of  the  people ; 
it  is  a  blunder  which  will  never  be  repaired."  Events  have 
proved  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  right,  and  that  from  that 
fatal  event  the  moral  decline  of  him  who  at  that  time  made 
all  Europe  tremble  may  be  dated.* 

About  this  time  the  mild  and  gentle  Queen  of  Naples  set 
out  to  rejoin  her  husband  in  Spain,  and  to  take  her  place 
upon  a  throne  from  which  she  was  destined  to  descend  be- 
fore very  long. 

*  Talleyrand's  opposition  to  the  war  with  Spain  has  been  often  denied,  and 
by  the  Emperor  himself.  My  grandmother's  testimony  leaves  not  the  slightest 
doubt  of  the  fact,  which  does  so  much  honor  to  the  good  sense  and  the  perspi- 
cacity of  the  Grand  Chamberlain.  M.  Beugnot  records  an  almost  identical  con- 
versation in  his  Memoirs.  "  Victories,"  said  the  Prince  to  him,  "  can  not  efface 
such  deeds,  because  there  is  vileness  in  them,  deceit  and  trickery.  I  can  not 
tell  what  will  happen,  but  you  will  see  this  will  never  be  forgotten  by  anybody." 


CHAPTEE   XXIX. 

(1808.) 

The  War  with  Spain— The  Prince  of  the  Peace— The  Prince  of  the  Asturias— The 
Abdication  of  King  Charles  IV. — The  Departure  of  the  Emperor — His  Sojourn 
at  Bayonne — Letter  of  the  Emperor — Arrival  of  the  Princes  in  France — Birth 
of  the  Second  Son  of  the  Queen  of  Holland— Abdication  of  the  Prince  of  the 
Asturias. 

• 

ON  the  2d  of  July,  1808,  the  Emperor  set  out  on  the 
pretext  of  visiting  the  southern  provinces,  but  in  reality  to 
watch  what  was  going  on  in  Spain.  I  will  give  an  idea  of 
what  that  was  as  suc'cinctly  as  possible.* 

The  transactions  of  Charles  IY.  with  the  different  Gov- 
ernments of  France  were  well  known.  After  having  vainly 
attempted  in  1793  to  save  the  life  of  Louis  XVL,  at  the 
close  of  a  war  nobly  undertaken  but  unskillfully  conducted, 
the  Spaniards  had  to  submit  to  the  dictation  of  the  conqueror, 
and  the  French  Government  had  always  meddled  more  or  less 
in  their  affairs  since  that  time. 

*  I  have  thought  it  right  to  publish  this  chapter,  or  rather  this  fragment  of 
a  chapter,  the  last  which  my  grandmother  wrote,  although  it  is  quite  unfinished, 
and  there  is  nothing  in  it  except  the  historical  narrative  of  events  at  Aranjuez 
and  Bayonne.  She  probably  thought  it  necessary  to  preface  by  a  statement  of 
facts  the  reflections  which  she  would  afterward  have  to  make  upon  the  moral 
and  political  effect  of  these  events,  the  rupture  which  they  brought  about  be- 
tween the  Emperor  and  Talleyrand,  and  the  influence  of  that  rupture  upon  her 
own  position  and  that  of  her  husband.  Her  narrative  agrees  perfectly  with  M. 
Thiers's  account  of  these  incidents,  nor  does  she  paint  the  picture  in  darker 
colors  than  those  which  he  has  used.  The  gravest  point — that  is  to  say,  Savary's 
mission  to  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias — is  treated  by  the  great  historian  in  a 
manner  which  confirms,  and  even  goes  beyond,  the  statements  of  these  Me- 
moirs.— P.  R. 


632  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RfiMUSAT. 

At  the  head  of  the  administration  was  Emamiel  Godoy — 
a  man  of  ordinary  capacity,  who  had  risen  to  the  position 
which  he  now  held,  and  was  governing  the  Spains,  as  the 
result  of  the  feelings  with  which  he  had  inspired  the  Queen. 
On  him  had  been  heaped  all  the  dignities,  honors,  and  trea- 
sures which  any  favorite  could  possibly  obtain.  He  was  born 
in  1768,  of  a  noble  family,  and  placed  in  the  royal  Body- 
guard in  1787.  The  Queen  took  him  into  favor,  and  he  rose 
rapidly  from  rank  to  rank,  becoming  lieutenant-general, 
Duke  of  Alcudia,  and  in  1792  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs. 
In  1795  he  was  made  Prince  of  the  Peace.  After  the  treaty 
which  he  concluded  with  France  in  1798,  with  so  little  honor 
to  himself,  he  ceased  to  be  Minister ;  but  he  still  directed 
affairs,  and  all  his  life  he  exercised  complete  empire  over 
King  Charles  IY.,  who  strangely  shared  the  infatuation  of 
the  Queen  his  wife.  The  Prince  of  the  Peace  married  a 
niece  of  the  King. 

The  good  understanding  which  existed  between  France 
and  Spain  appeared  to  be  intact  until  the  opening  of  the 
Prussian  campaign,  when  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  believing 
that  the  war  would  injure  the  fortunes  of  the  Emperor,  pro- 
posed to  arm  Spain,  so  that  the  country  should  be  ready  to 
profit  by  events  which  might  enable  it  to  shake  off  the  French 
yoke.  He  issued  a  proclamation,  inviting  all  Spaniards  to 
enroll  themselves.  This  proclamation  reached  the  Emperor 
on  the  battle-field  of  Jena,  and  many  persons  have  said  that 
from  that  moment  he  was  resolved  on  the  destruction  of  the 
house  of  Bourbon  in  Spain.  After  his  great  victories  he 
distributed  the  Spanish  troops  over  all  points  of  Europe,  and 
the  Prince  of  the  Peace  obtained  his  protection  only  at  the 
price  of  submitting  to  his  policy. 

Bonaparte  often  asserted  in  1808  that  at  Tilsit  the  Czar 
had  approved  his  designs  upon  Spain ;  and,  in  fact,  the  inter- 
view of  the  two  Emperors  took  place  so  amicably  at  Erfurt, 
immediately  after  the  overthrow  of  Charles  IY.,  that  it  is 
very  likely  they  had  mutually  authorized  each  other  to  pursue 


THE  PRINCE  OF  THE  PEACE.  633 

their  projects,  the  one  toward  the  north  and  the  other  toward 
the  south.  But  I  can  not  tell  to  what  extent  Bonaparte  de- 
ceived the  Emperor  of  Russia,  nor  whether  he  did  not  begin 
by  hinting  to  him  the  division  of  the  states  of  King  Charles 
IY.  which  he  was  pretending  to  prepare,  and  the  equivalent 
in  Italy  which  he  feigned  to  intend  to  give  him.  Perhaps 
he  had  not  yet  arranged  his  plan  for  entirely  dispossessing 
him,  and  it  is  quite  certain  that  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  not  in 
the  plot. 

Murat,  in  his  correspondence  with  the  Prince  of  the 
Peace,  bribed  him  with  the  government  of  a  portion  of 
Portugal,  which,  he  said,  should  become  the  kingdom  of  the 
Algarves.  Another  portion  of  Portugal  was  to  belong  to 
the  King  of  Etruria,  and  Etruria  was  thenceforth  to  become 
the  empire  of  King  Charles  IY.,  who  was  to  keep  the  Amer- 
ican colonies,  and  at  the  general  peace  to  take  the  title  of 
Emperor  of  the  Two  Americas. 

In  1807  a  treaty  on  these  bases  was  concluded  at  Fontaine- 
bleau,  without  the  knowledge  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  the 
passage  of  our  troops  through  Spain  for  the  conquest  of 
Portugal  was  granted  by  the  Prince  of  the  Peace.  At  Milan 
the  Emperor  signified  to  the  Queen  of  Etruria  that  she  was 
to  return  to  her  father.  Meanwhile  the  Prince  of  the  Peace 
was  becoming  more  and  more  odious  to  the  Spanish  nation, 
and  was  especially  hated  by  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias.  The 
latter,  impelled  by  his  own  feelings  and  by  the  advice  of 
those  who  surrounded  him,  distressed  by  the  increasing 
alienation  of  his  mother  and  the  weakness  of  his  father, 
alarmed  at  the  entry  of  our  troops,  which  made  him  suspect 
some  fresh  plot,  and  especially  indignant  that  the  Prince  of 
the  Peace  should  endeavor  to  make  him  contract  a  marriage 
with  the  sister  of  the  Princess,  wrote  to  Bonaparte  to  apprise 
him  of  the  grievances  of  the  Spaniards  against  the  favorite, 
and  to  request  his  support  and  the  hand  of  a  lady  of  the 
Bonaparte  family.  To  this  request,  which  was  probably 
inspired  by  the  ambassador  of  France,  the  Emperor  made 


634:  MEMOIRS   OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

no  immediate  reply.  Shortly  afterward  the  Prince  of  the 
Asturias  was  denounced  as  a  conspirator  and  arrested,  and  his 
friends  were  exiled.  Several  notes  denunciatory  of  the  exac- 
tions of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  were  found  among  his  papers, 
and  on  this  a  charge  of  conspiracy  was  founded.  The  Queen 
pursued  her  son  with  determined  enmity,  and  the  Prince  of 
the  Asturias  was  about  to  be  brought  to  trial  when  letters  from 
the  Emperor,  signifying  that  he  would  not  permit  a  question 
of  the  project  of  marriage  to  be  raised,  reached  Madrid.  As 
it  was  upon  this  point  that  the  accusation  of  conspiracy  was 
to  bear,  the  charge  had  to  be  abandoned.  The  Prince  of  the 
Peace  wanted  to  take  credit  for  indulgence,  and  pretended 
that  he  had  solicited  and  obtained  pardon  for  the  Prince  of 
the  Asturias.  King  Charles  IV.  wrote  to  the  Emperor,  giving 
him  an  account  of  the  affair  and  of  his  own  conduct ;  and 
Bonaparte  became  adviser  and  arbitrator  in  all  these  difficul- 
ties, which  so  far  were  favorable  to  his  own  designs.  These 
events  took  place  in  October,  1807. 

Meanwhile  our  troops  were  establishing  themselves  in 
Spain.  The  Spaniards,  surprised  by  this  invasion,  com- 
plained bitterly  of  the  weakness  of  their  sovereign  and  the 
treason  of  the  favorite.  It  was  asked  why  the  Spanish 
armies  were  sent  to  the  frontiers  of  Portugal,  far  from  the 
center  of  the  kingdom,  which  was  thus  delivered  over  with- 
out defense.  Murat  was  marching  toward  Madrid.  The 
Prince  of  the  Peace  sent  a  creature  of  his  own,  one  Izquier- 
do,  to  Fontainebleau  for  final  instructions.  This  man  had 
an  interview  with  M.  de  Talleyrand,  in  which  the  latter  in- 
formed him  of  the  error  into  which  the  Prince  of  the  Peace 
had  fallen,  and  showed  him  that  the  treaty  just  signed  at 
Fontainebleau  involved  the  complete  destruction  of  the 
power  of  Spain.  Izquierdo,  thunderstruck  at  all  he  heard, 
returned  immediately  to  Madrid,  and  the  Prince  of  the  Peace 
began  to  perceive  how  he  had  been  tricked.  But  it  was  too 
late.  The  troops  were  recalled,  and  a  project  of  imitating 
the  conduct  of  the  Prince  of  Brazil  by  abandoning  the  Con- 


THE  ABDICATION  OF  CHARLES  IV.  635 

tinent  was  discussed.  The  Court  was  at  Aranjuez  ;  its  prep- 
arations, however,  could  not  be  so  secretly  conducted  but 
that  they  transpired  in  Madrid.  The  excitement  in  the  city 
was  increased  by  intelligence  of  the  approach  of  Murat  and 
of  the  intended  departure  of  the  King,  and  soon  broke  out 
into  a  revolt ;  the  people  went  in  crowds  to  Aranjuez,  the 
King  was  detained  as  a  prisoner  in  the  palace,  and  the  house 
of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  was  sacked,  while  he  himself 
was  thrown  into  prison,  barely  escaping  from  the  fury  of  the 
populace.  Charles  IV.  was  forced  to  disgrace  his  favorite 
and  banish  him  from  Spain.  On  the  following  day  the  King, 
either  feeling  himself  too  weak  to  rule  over  a  country  about 
to  become  the  scene  of  discord,  or  successfully  coerced  by 
the  opposite  party,  abdicated  in  favor  of  his  son. 

All  this  took  place  at  a  few  leagues'  distance  from  Madrid, 
where  Murat  had  established  his  headquarters.  On  the  19th 
of  March,  1808,  Charles  IY.  wrote  to  the  Emperor  that,  on 
account  of  his  health,  he  was  unable  to  remain  in  Spain,  and 
that  he  had  just  abdicated  in  favor  of  his  son.  This  occur- 
rence upset  all  Bonaparte's  plans.  The  fruit  of  the  device 
which  he  had  been  planning  for  six  months  was  snatched 
from  him ;  Spain  was  about  to  pass  under  the  sway  of  a 
young  Prince  who,  judging  by  recent  events,  appeared  ca- 
pable of  taking  strong  measures.  The  Spanish  nation  would, 
no  doubt,  eagerly  embrace  the  cause  of  a  sovereign  whose 
aim  would  be  the  deliverance  of  his  country.  Our  army  was 
coldly  received  at  Madrid.  Murat  had  already  been  obliged 
to  have  recourse  to  severe  measures  for  the  maintenance  of 
order.  A  new  plan  was  necessary,  and  it  was  needful,  above 
all,  to  be  nearer  the  theatre  of  events,  so  as  to  estimate  them 
aright. 

For  these  reasons  the  Emperor  resolved  on  going  to  Ba- 
yonne.  He  left  Saint  Cloud  on  the  2d  of  April,  parting  with 
coolness  from  M.  de  Talleyrand,  and  abstaining  from  any  dis- 
closure of  his  plans.  The  "  Moniteur "  announced  that  the 
Emperor  was  about  to  visit  the  southern  departments,  and 


636  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

not  until  the  8th  of  April,  after  meager  accounts  of  what 
was  taking  place  in  Spain,  did  we  learn  that  his  presence  at 
Madrid  was  not  only  desired,  but  expected. 

The  Empress,  who  was  both  fond  of  traveling  and  averse 
to  being  separated  from  her  husband,  obtained  permission  to 
make  the  journey  after  his  departure,  and  she  soon  joined 
him  at  Bordeaux. 

M.  de  Talleyrand  was  uneasy  and  displeased  at  the  Em- 
peror's movements.  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  for  a  long 
time  past,  as  much  from  his  dislike  to  Murat  as  on  account 
of  other  projects  of  which  I  am  ignorant,  he  had  favored  the 
party  by  whom  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  was  guided.  On 
this  occasion  he  found  himself  put  aside,  and  realized  for  the 
first  time  that  Bonaparte  was  learning  to  do  without  him. 
In  Paris  we  were  all  mystified  at  what  was  going  on.  The 
official  articles  in  the  "  Moniteur  "  were  extremely  obscure ; 
nothing  that  emanated  from  the  Emperor  could  surprise  us ; 
but  even  curiosity  was  at  last  wearing  out,  and,  moreover,  no 
great  interest  was  felt  in  the  royal  house  of  Spain.  There 
was,  therefore,  very  little  excitement,  and  we  waited  for 
time  to  enlighten  us.  France  was  growing  used  to  expect 
that  Bonaparte  would  use  her  simply  for  his  own  personal 
ends. 

Meanwhile  Murat,  who  was  acquainted  with  some  of  the 
Emperor's  projects,  and  who  saw  that  some  of  them  must 
fail  through  the  abdication  of  Charles  IY.,  acted  with  skillful 
duplicity  at  Madrid.  He  contrived  to  avoid  recognizing  the 
Prince  of  the  Asturias,  and  all  the  evidence  leads  to  the  con- 
clusion that  he  contributed  to  excite  the  old  King's  desire  to 
resume  his  crown.  A  dispatch  from  General  Monthion,  who 
had  been  sent  as  envoy  to  Charles  IY.  at  Aranjuez,  was  pub- 
lished in  the  "  Moniteur,"  and  Europe  was  informed  that  the 
King  had  made  bitter  complaints  of  his  son,  had  declared 
that  his  abdication  was  forced,  and  had  placed  himself  in  the 
Emperor's  hands,  with  a  special  request  that  the  life  of  the 
Prince  of  the  Peace  should  be  spared.  The  Queen,  in  still 


THE  EMPERORS  SOJOURN  AT  BAYONNE.        637 

more  passionate  terms,  accused  her  son,  and  seemed  entirely 
engrossed  by  anxiety  for  the  fate  of  her  favorite. 

The  Spaniards  had  accepted  the  abdication  of  their  King, 
and  were  rejoiced  to  be  rid  of  the  yoke  of  the  Prince  of  the 
Peace.  They  were  impatient,  especially  at  Madrid,  of  the 
presence  of  the  French,  and  of  their  reserved  behavior 
toward  the  young  sovereign ;  and  Murat  could  repress  the 
growing  excitement  only  by  measures  of  severity,  necessary 
under  the  circumstances,  but  which  completed  the  detesta- 
tion in  which  we  were  held. 

On  the  Emperor's  arrival  at  Bayonne,  he  took  up  his 
abode  at  the  Chateau  de  Marrac,  about  a  mile  from  the  town. 
He  was  uncertain  as  to  what  might  come  of  his  present  un- 
dertaking, and  as  a  last  resource  was  prepared  to  go  to  Ma- 
drid ;  but  he  was  fully  determined  not  to  let  the  fruit  of  his 
endeavors  escape  him.  No  one  about  him  was  in  the  secret : 
he  controlled  the  actions  of  all  without  confiding  in  any  one. 
In  the  Abbe  de  Pradt's  "History  of  the  Revolution  in 
Spain,"  there  are  some  interesting  notes  and  comments  on 
the  force  of  character  which  enabled  the  Emperor  to  bear 
quite  alone  the  secret  of  his  vast  conceptions.  The  Abbe  de 
Pradt  was  at  that  time  Bishop  of  Poitiers,  and  Bonaparte, 
on  passing  through  the  city,  attached  him  to  his  suite,  be- 
lieving he  should  be  able  to  make  use  of  his  well-known  tal- 
ent and  inclination  for  intrigue. 

Several  persons  who  accompanied  the  Emperor  on  this 
journey  told  me  that  their  sojourn  at  Marrac  was  dull,  and 
that  they  all  wished  for  a  climax  to  the  events  then  taking 
place,  in  order  that  they  might  return  to  Paris. 

Savary  was  dispatched  to  Madrid,  and  in  all  probability 
received  orders  to  bring  back  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  at 
any  cost.  He  accomplished  his  mission  with  the  exactitude 
for  which  he  was  remarkable,  and  which  forbade  him  from 
criticising  either  the  orders  he  received  or  the  means  neces- 
sary to  their  fulfillment.  On  the  Yth  of  April  Savary  pre- 
sented himself  to  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  at  Madrid.  He 


638  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

announced  the  Emperor's  journey  into  Spain  as  certain,  as- 
sumed the  character  of  an  ambassador  coming  to  congratu- 
late a  new  King,  and  bound  himself,  in  the  name  of  his 
master,  not  to  meddle  with  any  Spanish  affairs  if  the  sover- 
eign's dispositions  were  friendly  toward  the  Emperor.  He 
next  insinuated  that  negotiations  would  be  greatly  expedited 
by  the  Prince's  moving  forward  to  meet  the  Emperor,  who 
intended  very  shortly  to  repair  to  Madrid ;  and  to  the  sur- 
prise of  every  one,  to  the  surprise  of  posterity  also,  he  con- 
trived to  persuade  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  and  his  Court 
to  undertake  the  journey.  "We  can  hardly  doubt  that  advice 
on  this  occasion  was  backed  by  threats,  and  that  the  unfortu- 
nate young  Prince  was  caught  in  a  multitude  of  snares,  all 
spread  for  him  at  once.  He  was,  no  doubt,  given  to  under- 
stand that  this  was  the  price  at  which  his  crown  must  be 
purchased,  and  that,  as  the  Emperor  wished  him  to  take  this 
step,  no  help  would  be  afforded  him  unless  he  consented  to 
it ;  the  bait  that  the  Emperor  would  meet  him  on  the  way 
was  also  held  out,  and  nothing  was  at  first  said  about  his 
crossing  the  frontier. 

The  Prince  of  the  Asturias  found  himself  involved  by 
circumstances  in  an  enterprise  beyond  his  strength ;  he  was 
more  the  puppet  than  the  chief  of  the  party  who  had  placed 
him  on  the  throne,  and  he  could  not  quite  reconcile  himself 
to  the  position  of  a  son  in  open  rebellion  against  his  father. 
Moreover,  he  was  intimidated  by  the  presence  of  our  troops, 
and  dared  not  answer  to  his  people  for  the  safety  of  their 
country  if  he  resisted  us.  His  advisers  were  alarmed.  Sa- 
vary's  counsels  were  mingled  with  threats,  and  the  unhappy 
Prince,  who  was  influenced  by  the  most  generous  sentiments, 
consented  to  a  step  which  was  the  proximate  cause  of  his 
ruin.  I  have  heard  Savary  say  that  the  orders  he  had  re- 
ceived were  so  positive  that,  when  once  he  had  him  on  the 
road  to  Bayonne,  he  would  not  have  suffered  him  to  turn 
back  for  any  consideration  in  the  world ;  and,  some  faith- 
ful adherents  having  conveyed  a  warning  to  the  Prince,  he 


LETTER  OF  THE  EMPEROR.  639 

watched  Mm  so  closely  that  he  felt  assured  no  human  power 
could  snatch  him  from  his  grasp. 

To  further  this  wicked  and  ably  laid  plot,  the  Emperor 
wrote  the  following  letter,  which  was  subsequently  published. 
It  was  handed  to  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  at  Yittoria,  and 
I  transcribe  it  here,  as  it  throws  a  light  on  the  events  which 
followed : 

"  BAYONNE,  April,  1808. 

"  MY  BROTHER  :  I  have  received  your  Royal  Highness's 
letter.  In  the  papers  of  the  King,  your  father,  you  must 
have  seen  proofs  of  the  interest  I  have  always  felt  in  your 
Royal  Highness.  You  will  permit  me,  under  present  cir- 
cumstances, to  address  you  loyally  and  frankly. 

"  I  hoped,  on  reaching  Madrid,  to  have  persuaded  my 
illustrious  friend  to  undertake  some  necessary  reforms  in  his 
states,  and  to  satisfy  in  some  measure  the  public  opinion  of 
the  country.  The  dismissal  of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace 
seemed  to  me  to  be  necessary  both  for  his  own  happiness 
and  that  of  his  subjects.  Affairs  in  the  north  have  delayed 
my  journey.  Certain  events  have  taken  place  at  Aranjuez. 
I  pronounce  no  judgment  on  these,  nor  on  the  conduct  of 
the  Prince  of  the  Peace ;  but  I  know  this  well,  that  it  is 
dangerous  for  kings  to  accustom  their  people  to  shed  blood 
and  to  administer  justice  to  themselves.  1  pray  God  that 
your  Royal  Highness  may  not  learn  this  one  day  by  your 
own  experience.  It  is  not  in  the  interest  of  Spain  to  injure 
a  Prince  who  is  husband  to  a  Princess  of  the  blood  royal, 
and  who  has  so  long  reigned  over  the  kingdom.  He  has 
now  no  friends,  nor  will  your  Highness  have  any  if  misfor- 
tune overtake  you.  Men  are  always  ready  to  make  us  suffer 
for  the  honors  they  have  paid  us.  Besides,  how  could  pro- 
ceedings be  taken  against  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  without 
implicating  the  Queen  and  the  King,  your  father  ?  Such  a 
lawsuit  will  encourage  dissensions  and  faction,  and  the  con- 
sequences will  be  fatal  to  your  crown.  Your  Royal  High- 
ness has  no  other  claim  to  it  than  that  conferred  on  you  by 
46 


640  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtilMUSAT. 

your  mother ;  if  the  lawsuit  reflects  dishonor  on  her,  your 
Royal  Highness's  rights  will  be  thereby  destroyed.  Close 
your  ears,  therefore,  to  weak  and  perfidious  counsel ;  you 
have  no  right  to  sit  in  judgment  on  the  Prince  of  the  Peace. 
His  crimes,  if  he  is  accused  of  any,  are  absorbed  in  the  rights 
of  the  throne.  I  have  often  expressed  a  desire  that  the 
Prince  of  the  Peace  should  be  removed  from  the  conduct  of 
affairs.  The  friendship  of  King  Charles  has  often  induced 
me  to  keep  silence,  and  to  turn  away  my  eyes  from  his  weak 
attachment.  Wretched  creatures  that  we  all  are  !  our  motto 
should  be, '  Weakness  and  Error.5  But  all  may  be  arranged. 
Let  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  be  banished  from  Spain  ;  I  will 
offer  him  a  refuge  in  France. 

"  As  to  the  abdication  of  King  Charles  IY.,  he  made  it 
at  a  time  when  my  army  was  occupying  Spain,  and  in  the 
eyes  of  Europe  and  of  posterity  I  should  appear  to  have  sent 
large  numbers  of  troops  thither  merely  in  order  to  turn  my 
ally  and  my  friend  off  his  throne.  As  a  neighboring  sover- 
eign, I  may  be  allowed  to  wait  for  full  and  entire  informa- 
tion before  recognizing  this  abdication.  I  say  to  your  Royal 
Highness,  to  all  Spaniards,  and  to  the  whole  world,  if  the 
abdication  of  King  Charles  IY.  is  spontaneous,  if  it  has  not 
been  forced  on  him  by  the  insurrection  and  the  tumult  at 
Aranjuez,  I  will  make  no  difficulty  about  recognizing  it,  and 
will  acknowledge  your  Royal  Highness  to  be  King  of  Spain. 
I  desire,  therefore,  to  converse  with  you  to  this  end.  The 
caution  with  which  I  have  watched  these  things  for  the  last 
month  should  be  a  guarantee  of  the  support  I  would  afford 
you  if,  in  your  turn,  a  factious  spirit,  of  whatever  kind, 
should  disturb  you  on  your  throne.  When  King  Charles 
informed  me  of  the  events  of  last  October,  I  was  painfully 
impressed  by  them,  and  I  may  have  contributed,  by  the  sug- 
gestions I  then  made,  to  the  happy  ending  of  the  Escurial 
affair.  Your  Royal  Highness  was  greatly  to  blame:  no 
other  proof  of  this  is  needed  than  the  letter  you  addressed 
to  me,  which  I  have  persistently  ignored.  When,  in  your 


THE  DEPARTURE  OF  THE  YOUNG  KING.        641 

turn,  yon  are  a  King,  you  will  know  how  sacred  are  the 
rights  of  a  throne.  Any  advances  made  to  a  foreign  sover- 
eign are  criminal.  Yonr  Eoyal  Highness  must  be  on  your 
guard  against  outbursts  of  popular  feeling.  A  few  of  my 
soldiers  might  be  murdered  in  isolated  situations,  but  the 
destruction  of  Spain  would  be  the  result.  I  already  perceive 
with  regret  that  letters  from  the  Captain-General  of  Cata- 
lonia have  been  distributed  about  Madrid,  and  that  every- 
thing has  been  done  to  promote  disturbance  there. 

"  I  have  now  fully  explained  myself  to  your  Royal  High- 
ness; you  perceive  that  I  am  hesitating  between  various 
ideas,  which  require  confirmation.  You  may  be  assured  that, 
in  any  case,  I  shall  treat  you  as  I  would  treat  the  King,  your 
father.  I  beg  you  to  believe  in  my  desire  for  conciliation, 
and  to  grant  me  an  opportunity  of  proving  my  good  will  and 
high  esteem." 

"We  see  by  this  letter  that  the  Emperor  still  reserved  to 
himself  the  right  of  judging  of  the  validity  of  the  abdication 
of  Charles  IY.  It  appears,  however,  that  Savary  flattered 
the  young  King  into  the  belief  of  more  positive  approbation 
than  was  actually  contained  in  the  letter,  while  Murat  was 
secretly  urging  King  Charles  to  retract.  By  thus  writing  to 
the  Prince  of  the  Asturias,  the  Emperor  contrived  a  means 
of  saving  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  if  necessary,  from  taking 
part  with  Charles  IY.,  and  finally  of  blaming  the  first  symp- 
tom of  rebellion  against  his  father  on  the  part  of  the  Prince 
of  the  Asturias.  It  was  known,  however,  at  this  period  that 
the  ambassador  of  France  had  suggested  to  the  Prince  the 
demand  which  he  had  made  for  the  hand  of  a  Princess  of 
the  Imperial  family  in  marriage.  It  was  this  demand  which 
had  most  deeply  offended  the  favorite. 

The  Prince  of  the  Asturias  left  Madrid  on  the  10th  of 
April.  He  received  tokens  of  affection  from  his  people  on 
his  way,  and  great  anxiety  was  everywhere  displayed  at  his 
approach  to  the  frontier.  Savary  reiterated  his  assurances 


64:2  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

that  by  pushing  on  farther  they  must  meet  the  Emperor,  and 
kept  the  Prince  under  strict  guard.  On  reaching  Burgos, 
the  Prince's  council  began  to  take  alarm ;  but  they  continued 
their  route  to  Yittoria,  where  the  people  unharnessed  the 
horses  from  the  carriage,  the  guard  had  to  force  a  passage, 
and  this  was  done  almost  against  the  will  of  the  Prince, 
whose  hopes  were  fading. 

"  At  Yittoria,"  Savary  told  me  afterward,  "  I  thought  for 
an  instant  that  my  prisoner  was  about  to  escape,  but  I  took 
care  he  should  not.  I  frightened  him."  "  But,"  I  answered, 
"  do  you  mean  that,  if  he  had  resisted,  you  would  have  killed 
him?"  "Oh  no,"  he  said;  "but  I  protest  that  I  would 
never  have  let  him  go  back." 

The  Prince's  councilors,  however,  were  reassured  by  the 
reflection  that  a  marriage  would  conciliate  all  parties,  and, 
being  unable  to  understand  the  immensity  of  the  Imperial 
projects,  they  looked  upon  such  an  alliance,  together  with 
the  sacrifice  of  a  few  men  and  of  the  liberty  of  trade,  as  the 
conclusion  of  a  definitive  treaty.  They  yielded,  therefore,  to 
the  soldierly  arguments  of  Savary,  and  finally  crossed  the 
frontier. 

The  royal  party  entered  Bayonne  on  the  21st  of  April. 
Those  persons  of  the  household  who  were  then  in  attendance 
on  the  Emperor  discovered,  by  the  change  in  his  temper, 
how  important  for  the  success  of  his  projects  was  the  arrival 
of  the  Infantes.  Until  then  he  had  seemed  full  of  care,  con- 
fiding in  no  one,  but  dispatching  courier  after  courier.  He 
dared  not  reckon  on  the  success  of  his  plan.  He  had  invited 
the  old  King  to  come  to  him,  who,  as  well  as  the  Queen  and 
the  favorite,  had  just  then  nothing  better  to  do;  but  it 
seemed  so  likely  that  the  new  King  would  take  advantage  of 
the  revolt  about  to  break  out  in  Spain  and  would  rouse  the 
new-born  enthusiasm  of  all  classes  for  the  deliverance  of 
their  country,  that,  until  the  actual  moment  when  he  was 
informed  that  the  Prince  had  crossed  the  Pyrenees,  the  Em- 
peror must  have  looked  on  the  event  as  wellnigh  impossible. 


THE  EMPEROR'S  DOUBLE-DEALING.  643 

He  has  since  said  that,  dating  from  this  blunder,  he  had  no 
longer  a  doubt  of  the  incapacity  of  King  Ferdinand. 

On  the  20th  of  April  the  Queen  of  Holland  gave  birth 
to  a  son,  who  was  named  Louis.* 

At  this  time  the  painter  Kobert  died.  He  was  famous 
for  his  artistic  talent,  his  taste  in  architecture,  and  was,  be- 
sides, an  excellent  and  very  clever  man.f 

The  Abbe  de  Pradt  has  narrated  all  the  circumstances  of 
the  arrival  of  the  Princes ;  and,  as  he  witnessed  it,  I  again 
refer  to  his  work,  without  feeling  bound  to  quote  from  it 
here.  He  says  that  the  Emperor  came  from  Marrac  to  Ba- 
yonne;  that  he  treated  the  Prince  of  the  Asturias  as  an 
equal ;  that  he  invited  him  the  same  day  to  dinner,  treating 
him  with  royal  honors ;  and  that  it  was  not  until  the  evening 
of  that  day,  when  the  Prince  had  returned  to  his  dwelling, 
that  Savary  again  came  to  him,  with  orders  to  inform  him 
of  Bonaparte's  intentions.  These  intentions  were  to  over- 
throw the  reigning  dynasty,  in  order  to  put  his  own  in  its 
place,  and  consequently  the  abdication  of  the  whole  family 
was  demanded.  The  Abbe"  de  Pradt  is  naturally  astounded 
at  the  part  which  the  Emperor  played  during  the  day,  and 
one  can  hardly  conceive  why  he  gave  himself  the  trouble  to 
act  a  character  in  the  morning  so  contrary  to  that  of  the 
evening. 

Whatever  were  his  motives,  one  can  understand  the 
amazement  of  the  Spanish  Princes,  and  what  must  have 
been  their  regret,  having  thus  delivered  themselves  into  the 
hands  of  their  inflexible  enemy.  From  that  time  they  made 

*  This  child  became  the  Emperor  Napoleon  III.  The  singular  fate  which 
decreed  his  birth  on  the  very  day  of  the  arrival  of  the  Infantes  at  Bayonne,  at 
the  time  when  the  crime  and  the  blunder  of  the  Spanish  war  was  being  accom- 
plished, may  commend  itself  to  fatalistic  historians. — P.  R. 

f  This  does  not  mean  Leopold  Robert,  who  is  better  known  by  this  genera- 
tion, but  a  Hubert  Robert,  born  in  1733,  made  a  member  of  the  Academy  in 
1766,  and  known  by  pictures  of  ruins,  in  which  the  classical  taste  begins  to  be- 
tray some  modern,  or,  as  they  would  have  been  called  a  little  later,  romantic 
tendencies. 


644  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

efforts,  not  to  fly — f  or  they  quickly  perceived  that  flight  was 
impossible — but  to  inform  the  Junta,  sitting  at  Madrid,  of 
their  captivity  and  of  the  intentions  which  would  cause  the 
ruin  of  the  last  Bourbons.  The  greater  number  of  their 
messengers  were  stopped,  but  some  few  got  away  safely ;  the 
news  they  carried  excited  indignation  in  Madrid,  and  thence 
throughout  Spain.  Some  provinces  protested;  in  several 
towns  the  people  rose  in  revolt ;  in  Madrid  the  safety  of  the 
French  army  was  endangered.  Murat  redoubled  his  sever- 
ity, and  became  an  object  of  hatred,  as  well  as  terror,  to  all 
the  inhabitants. 

Every  one  knows  now  how  greatly  the  Emperor  deceived 
himself  as  to  the  condition  of  Spain  and  the  character  of  the 
Spaniards.  He  was  influenced  in  this  odious  undertaking 
by  those  same  defects  of  character  and  judgment  which  had 
on  other  occasions  led  him  into  such  grave  errors :  first,  his 
determination  to  prevail  by  sheer  force,  and  his  thirst  for 
instant  submission,  which  made  him  neglect  intermediaries, 
who  are  not  always  to  be  despised  with  impunity ;  and,  sec- 
ondly, an  obstinate  conviction  that  men  are  but  very  slight- 
ly influenced  by  their  mode  of  government,  and  that  national 
differences  are  so  unimportant  that  the  same  policy  will  an- 
swer equally  well  in  the  north  or  in  the  south,  with  Ger- 
mans, Frenchmen,  or  Spaniards.  He  has  since  admitted 
that  he  was  greatly  mistaken  in  this.  "When  he  learned 
that  there  existed  in  Spain  a  higher  class,  aware  of  the  bad 
government  under  which  it  lived,  and  anxious  for  some 
changes  in  the  constitution,  he  did  not  doubt  but  that  the 
people  too  would  swallow  the  bait  if  a  revolution  like  that 
of  France  were  offered  to  them.  He  believed  that  in  Spain, 
as  elsewhere,  men  would  be  easily  roused  against  the  tempo- 
ral power  of  the  priesthood.  His  keen  perception  appre- 
ciated the  movement  which  had  caused  the  revolt  of  Aran- 
juez,  and  had  placed  the  reins  of  power  in  the  hands  of  a 
weak  Prince,  too  evidently  lacking  ability  to  make  or  con- 
trol a  revolution ;  and  he  imagined,  overleaping  time  and  the 


SPAIN  IN  A  STATE  OF  ANARCHY.  645 

obstacles  or  circumstances  which  cause  delay,  that,  the  first 
impulse  of  movement  having  been  given  to  Spanish  institu- 
tions, a  complete  change  would  ensue.  He  believed  himself 
to  be  even  rendering  a  service  to  .the  nation  in  thus  fore- 
stalling events,  in  seizing  on  the  Spanish  revolution  before- 
hand, and  in  guiding  it  at  once  to  the  goal  which  he  thought 
it  destined  to  reach. 

But  even  were  it  possible  to  persuade  a  whole  nation,  and 
to  induce  it  to  accept,  as  the  outcome  of  a  wise  foresight, 
those  things  which  it  can  never  understand  except  through 
the  teaching  of  facts  and  often  of  misfortune,  the  hateful- 
ness  of  the  means  employed  by  the  Emperor  blasted  him  in 
the  eyes  of  those  he  wished  to  win,  and  whom  he  believed 
he  was  serving ;  "for  the  heart  of  Jehu  was  not  uptight,  nor 
his  hands  clean"  that  Spain  should  receive  him  as  the  re- 
former whom  she  needed.  Moreover,  a  foreign  yoke  was 
offensive  to  Spanish  pride ;  while  secret  machinations,  the 
imprisonment  of  the  sovereigns,  unconcealed  contempt  for 
religious  beliefs,  the  threats  that  were  used,  the  executions 
that  followed  on  them,  and,  later,  the  exactions  and  cruelties 
of  war,  all  concurred  to  prevent  any  concord.  The  two  con- 
tending parties,  each  inflamed  against  the  other,  were  soon 
filled  with  a  furious  longing  for  mutual  destruction.  The 
Emperor  himself  sacrificed  everything  rather  than  yield;  he 
was  lavish  of  men  and  money  only  that  he  might  prove  him- 
self the  strongest,  for  he  could  not  endure  the  shame  of  de- 
feat before  the  eyes  of  Europe,  and  a  bloody  war,  terrible 
disasters,  were  the  result  of  his  wounded  pride  and  his  tyran- 
nical will.  All  he  did,  therefore,  was  to  throw  Spain  into  a 
state  of  anarchy.  The  people,  finding  themselves  without 
an  army,  believed  that  the  defense  of  the  soil  devolved  upon 
them ;  and  Bonaparte,  who  took  pride  in  being  the  elect  of 
the  people,  and  who  also  felt  that  therein  lay  his  security — 
Bonaparte,  who,  to  be  consistent  in  his  theories,  should  never 
have  waged  war  except  on  kings — found  himself,  after  a  few 
years,  cut  adrift  from  that  policy  on  which  he  had  founded 


646  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

his  power  while  he  revealed  to  the  whole  world  that  he  used 
that  power  for  his  personal  advantage  only. 

Although  he  was  conscious  of  some  of  these  future  diffi- 
culties, he  continued  to  tread  the  devious  path  on  which  he 
had  entered.  The  Prince  of  the  Asturias  refused  to  sign 
an  act  of  abdication,  and  this  caused  him  great  perplexity. 
Fearing  that  the  Prince  might  escape  him,  he  caused  him  to 
be  strictly  watched ;  he  tried  him  by  every  kind  of  persua- 
sion and  threat,  and  all  who  surrounded  the  Emperor  soon 
became  aware  of  the  state  of  perturbation  into  which  he  had 
again  fallen.  Duroc,  Savary,  and  the  Abbe  de  Pradt  were 
enjoined  to  bribe,  to  persuade,  or  to  terrify  the  Prince's 
councilors.  But  how  is  it  possible  to  persuade  people  to 
consent  to  their  own  fall  from  power  ?  If  we  abide  by  the 
Emperor's  opinion,  that  every  member  of  the  reigning  family 
was  equally  stupid  and  incapable,  the  wiser  course  would  still 
have  been  to  have  left  them  in  possession  of  the  throne ;  for 
the  necessity  of  taking  action  in  times  that  were  becoming 
so  difficult  must  have  led  them  into  many  faults,  of  which 
their  enemy  might  have  taken  advantage.  But,  by  the  out- 
rageous insults  put  upon  them,  by  the  violation  of  every 
human  right  in  their  regard,  by  the  inaction  to  which  they 
were  forced,  by  imposing  on  them  the  simple  and  pathetic 
character  of  victims,  their  part  was  made  so  easy  to  play  that 
they  became  objects  of  interest  without  having  to  take  the 
smallest  pains  to  excite  that  sentiment.  With  respect  to  the 
Spanish  Princes  and  the  Pope,  the  Emperor  committed  the 
same  blunder  and  incurred  the  same  penalty. 

Meanwhile,  he  was  determined  to  end  this  state  of  men- 
tal anxiety,  and  he  decided  on  sending  for  King  Charles  IY. 
to  Bayonne,  and  on  openly  espousing  the  cause  of  the  de- 
throned old  monarch.  He  foresaw  that  this  course  of  action 
must  be  followed  by  war,  but  he  nattered  himself — his  vivid 
imagination  was  always  ready  to  natter  him  when  he  had 
fully  decided  on  any  step — that  this  war  would  resemble  all 
the  others.  "Yes,"  he  said,  "I  feel  that  I  am  not  doing 


ABDICATION  OF  THE  PRINCE  OF  THE  ASTURIAS.  64/T 

right;  but  why  do  not  they  declare  war  on  me?"  And 
when  it  was  pointed  out  to  him  that  he  could  scarcely  expect 
a  declaration  of  war  from  persons  removed  from  their  own 
territory  and  deprived  of  their  liberty,  he  exclaimed  :  "  But 
why  did  they  come,  then  ?  They  are  inexperienced  young 
men,  and  have  come  here  without  passports.  I  consider  this 
enterprise  as  very  important,  for  my  navy  is  defective,  and 
it  will  cost  me  the  six  vessels  I  have  now  at  Cadiz."  On 
another  occasion  he  said  :  "  If  this  were  to  cost  me  eighty 
thousand  men,  I  would  not  undertake  it ;  but  I  shall  not 
need  twelve  thousand.  It  is  a  mere  trifle.  The  people  here 
don't  know  what  a  French  brigade  means.  The  Prussians 
were  just  the  same,  and  we  know  how  they  fared  in  con- 
sequence. Depend  upon  it,  this  will  soon  be  over.  I  do 
not  wish  to  harm  any  one,  but,  when  my  big  political  car  is 
started,  it  must  go  on  its  way.  Woe  to  those  who  get  under 
the  wheels!"* 

Toward  the  end  of  April  the  Prince  of  the  Peace  arrived 
at  Bayonne.  Murat  had  released  him  from  the  captivity  in 
which  he  was  held  at  Madrid.  The  Junta,  under  the  presi- 
dency of  Don  Antonio,  brother  to  Charles  IY.,  gave  him  up 
unwillingly,  but  the  time  for  resistance  was  over.  The  fa- 
vorite had  lost  any  hope  of  future  sovereignty,  his  life  was 
in  danger  in  Spain,  and  the  Emperor's  protection  was  his 
only  resource ;  therefore  there  was  little  doubt  but  that  he 
would  agree  to  anything  required  of  him.  He  was  instruct- 
ed to  guide  King  Charles  in  the  path  the  Emperor  wished 
him  to  follow,  and  he  acquiesced  without  a  word. 

I  can  not  refrain  from  transcribing  some  reflections  of 
the  Abbe  de  Pradt,  which  seem  to  me  to  be  very  sensible 
and  appropriate  here. 

"At  this  period,"  he  says,  "that  part  of  the  scheme 
which  concerned  the  translation  of  Joseph  to  Madrid  was 
not  as  yet  made  public.  It  may  have  been  discerned,  but 

"  Memoires  Historiques  sur  la  Revolution  en  Espagne,  par  1'auteur  du  Con- 
grfcs  de  Vienne."  Paris,  1816.— P.  R. 


64:8  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R^MUSAT. 

Napoleon  had  not  disclosed  it.  In  the  interviews  with 
Napoleon  which  the  negotiation  with  M.  Escoiquiz  procured 
for  me  he  never  made  any  allusion  to 'it.  He  left  to  time 
the  task  of  unfolding  each  feature  of  a  plan  which  he  re- 
vealed cautiously  and  by  slow  degrees,  and  after  he  had 
cherished  it  for  a  long  succession  of  days  in  his  own  mind, 
without  relieving  himself  of  the  burden  by  one  indiscreet 
word.  This  was  sad  misuse  of  moral  strength,  but  it  proves 
how  great  is  the  self-mastery  of  a  man  who  can  thus  control 
his  words,  especially  when  naturally  inclined  to  indiscretion, 
as  Napoleon  was,  particularly  when  he  was  angry." 

King  Charles  IV.  reached  Bayonne  on  the  1st  of  May, 
accompanied  by  his  wife,  their  youngest  son,  the  daughter 
of  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  and  the  Queen  of  Etruria  and 
her  son.  Shortly  afterward  Don  Antonio  arrived  also ;  he 
had  been  obliged  to  leave  the  Junta  and  to  join  his  relatives. 


CONCLUSION. 


THE  Memoirs  of  my  grandmother  come  to  an  end  here, 
and  general  regret  will,  no  doubt,  be  felt  that  she  was  pre- 
vented by  death  from  continuing  them,  at  any  rate  so  far  as 
the  divorce  from  the  Emperor,  which,  from  the  very  begin- 
ning, hangs  threateningly  over  the  head  of  the  fascinating, 
lovable,  and  yet  somewhat  uninteresting  Josephine.  No 
one  can  supply  what  is  wanting  here ;  even  the  correspond- 
ence of  the  author  affords  little  political  information  respect- 
ing the  succeeding  period,  and  during  the  latter  part  of  her 
life  she  seldom  spoke  of  what  she  had  witnessed  or  endured. 
My  father  entertained  at  times  the  idea  of  continuing  her 
narrative,  by  putting  together  what  he  had  heard  from  his 
parents,  anecdotes  or  expressions  of  their  opinions  in  the 
last  days  of  the  Empire,  and  what  he  himself  knew  concern- 
ing their  lives.  He  did  not  carry  out  his  plan  in  its  entirety, 
nor  did  he  leave  anything  on  the  subject  complete.  His 
notes,  however,  seem  to  me  to  be  valuable,  and  give  the 
ending  of  the  great  drama  which  has  been  described  in  the 
foregoing  pages.  It  will  be  interesting  to  read  them  as  a 
continuation  of  the  Memoirs,  which  they  complete,  although 
he  has  recorded  his  opinions  concerning  the  latter  days  of 
the  Empire,  and  the  period  when  he  himself  entered  politi- 
cal life,  in  a  more  extensive  work.  His  political  views  and 
clear  definition  of  the  conduct  of  officials  and  of  citizens  in 


650  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  .DE  R^MUSAT. 

times  of  difficulty  deserve  to  be  made  known.  I  have  added 
this  chapter  to  the  Memoirs,  and  published  the  notes  of 
which  I  speak  in  their  original  unstudied  form,  confining  my- 
self to  the  slight  modifications  necessary  to  make  the  narra- 
tive succinct  and  clear. 

The  Spanish  sovereigns  arrived  at  Bayonne  in  May,  1808. 
The  Emperor  dispatched  them  to  Fontainebleau,  and  sent 
Ferdinand  VII.  to  Valencay,  an  estate  belonging  to  M.  de 
Talleyrand.  Then  he  himself  returned,  after  having  trav- 
eled through  the  southern  and  western  departments,  and 
made  a  political  journey  into  La  Vendee,  where  his  presence 
produced  a  great  effect.  He  reached  Paris  about  the  middle 
of  August.  Count  de  Kemusat  writes : 

"  My  father,  who  was  then  First  Chamberlain,  was  ap- 
pointed to  receive  the  Spanish  Bourbons  at  Foutainebleau. 
He  accomplished  his  task  with  the  attention  and  courtesy 
habitual  to  him.  Although  on  his  return  he  gave  us  an  ac- 
count which  conveyed  no  exalted  idea  of  the  King,  the 
Queen,  or  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  who  accompanied  them, 
he  had  treated  these  dethroned  Princes  with  the  respect 
due  to  rank  and  misfortune.  It  would  seem  that  some  of 
the  other  Court  officials  had  behaved  in  a  different  fashion, 
rather  from  ignorance  than  from  ill  feeling.  Charles  IV. 
noticed  this,  and  said,  <  Kemusat,  at  any  rate,  knows  that  I 
am  a  Bourbon.' 

"  M.  de  Talleyrand  happened  to  be  actually  staying  at 
Valencay  when  the  Emperor  sent  him  orders  to  proceed 
thither,  with  an  evident  intention  of  committing  him  to  the 
Spanish  affair,  to  receive  the  three  Infantes.  He  was  not 
altogether  pleased  with  the  task,  nor  on  his  return  did  he 
refrain  from  sarcastic  remarks  concerning  these  strange  de- 
scendants of  Louis  XIV.  He  used  to  tell  us  that  they  bought 
children's  toys  at  all  the  booths  at  the  neighboring  fairs,  and 
when  a  poor  person  begged  an  alms  of  them  they  would  give 
him  a  doll.  He  afterward  accused  them  of  dilapidations  at 
Valencay,  and  cleverly  mentioned  the  fact  to  Louis  XVIIL, 


CONCLUSION.  651 

who,  being  desirous  to  dismiss  him  from  Court,  while  he  had 
not  the  courage  to  order  him  to  go,  took  occasion  to  praise 
the  beauty  and  splendor  of  his  seat  at  Valencay.  <  Yes,  it 
is  pretty  fair,'  he  said,  <  but  the  Spanish  Princes  entirely 
spoiled  it  with  the  fireworks  on  St.  Napoleon's  Day.' 

"  Although  M.  de  Talleyrand  was  aware  that  his  position 
with  the  Emperor  was  altered,  yet  he  found  Bonaparte 
when  he  joined  him  well  disposed  and  inclined  to  trust  him. 
There  was  no  perceptible  cloud  between  them.  The  Em- 
peror had  need  of  him  for  the  conference  at  Erfurt,  to  which 
they  went  together  at  the  end  of  September.  My  father 
was  in  attendance  on  the  Emperor.  The  letters  which  he 
doubtless  wrote  thence  to  my  mother  have  not  been  found ; 
but  their  correspondence  was  so  strictly  watched,  and  must 
therefore  have  been  so  reserved,  that  its  loss  is,  I  fancy,  of 
little  importance.  My  father's  general  letters  referred  to  the 
good  understanding  between  the  two  Emperors,  their  mutual 
finessing,  and  the  fine  manners  of  the  Emperor  Alexander. 

"  M.  de  Talleyrand  composed  a  narrative  of  this  Erfurt 
conference,  which  he  was  in  the  habit  of  reading  aloud.  He 
used  to  boast,  on  his  return,  that  as  the  two  Emperors  en- 
tered their  respective  carriages,  each  about  to  journey  in  a 
different  direction,  he  had  said  to  Alexander,  while  attending 
him,  '  If  you  could  only  get  into  the  wrong  carriage  ! '  He 
had  discerned  some  fine  qualities  in  the  Czar,  and  had  en- 
deavored to  win  favor,  by  which  he  profited  in  1814 ;  but, 
at  the  time  of  which  I  am  writing,  he  looked  on  a  Rus- 
sian alliance  as  a  merely  accidental  necessity  during  a  war 
with  England,  and  he  persistently  held  that  friendship  with 
Austria,  which  would  eventually  become  a  basis  for  an  alli- 
ance with  England,  was  the  true  system  for  France  in  Eu- 
rope. His  conduct  of  political  affairs,  whether  at  the  time 
of  Napoleon's  marriage,  or  in  1814,  in  1815,  or,  again,  in  the 
reign  of  Louis  Philippe,  was  always  consistent  with  this 
theory.  He  often  spoke  of  it  to  my  mother. 

"  My  mother,  in  order  to  complete  the  history  of  the  year 


652  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

1808,  would  have  had  to  narrate,  first,  the  Erfurt  conference, 
according  to  the  narratives  of  M.  de  Talleyrand  and  of  my 
father ;  and,  secondly,  the  reaction  of  the  Spanish  affair  on 
the  Court  of  the  Tuileries  and  on  Parisian  society.  The  Koy- 
alist  section  of  the  Court  and  society  was  deeply  moved  by  the 
presence  of  the  ancient  Bourbons  at  Fontainebleau.  Here,  I 
think,  she  would  have  placed  the  disgrace  and  exile  of  Mme. 
de  Chevreuse. 

"  The  Emperor  came  back  from  Erfurt  in  October,  but 
he  merely  passed  through  Paris,  and  started  immediately  for 
Spain,  whence  he  returned  at  the  beginning  of  1809,  after 
an  indecisive  campaign. 

"Public  opinion  was  far  from  favorable  to  his  policy. 
For  the  first  time  the  possibility  of  his  loss  had  occurred  to 
the  minds  of  men,  especially  of  his  sudden  death  in  the 
course  of  a  war  in  which  a  motive  of  patriotism  might  nerve 
an  assassin's  hand.  Various  reports,  partly  loyal  and  partly 
malicious,  had  made  the  progress  of  disapprobation  and 
discontent  known  to  him.  Talleyrand  and  Fouche  had  not 
hesitated  to  confirm  those  reports.  The  former,  especially, 
was  always  bold,  and  even  imprudent,  as  are  all  men  who  are 
proud  of  their  powers  of  conversation  and  believe  in  them 
as  in  a  force.  Fouche,  who  was  more  reserved,  or  less  often 
quoted  in  society,  probably  went  further  in  fact.  After  his 
positive  fashion,  he  had  been  practically  considering  the 
hypothesis  of  the  opening  up  of  the  Imperial  succession,  and 
this  consideration  had  brought  him  nearer  to  M.  de  Talley- 
rand's opinions. 

"  The  Emperor  returned  in  an  angry  mood,  and  vented 
his  irritation  on  the  Court,  and  especially  at  the  Ministerial 
Council,  in  the  celebrated  scene  in  which  he  dismissed  M.  de 
Talleyrand  *  from  his  post  of  Grand  Chamberlain,  and  put 
M.  de  Montesquiou  in  his  place. 

"  That  important  functionaries  of  the  Empire,  such  as 
Talleyrand  and  Fouche,  as  well  as  other  less  prominent  per- 
*  Thiers's  "  Histoire  du  Consulat  et  de  1'Empire,"  vol.  x.,  p.  17. 


CONCLUSION.  653 

sons,  should  have  behaved  as  they  did  on  this  occasion,  has 
been  severely  commented  on.  I  am  ready  to  admit  that 
vanity  and  talkativeness  may  have  led  Talleyrand  and  Fouche 
to  say  more  than  was  prudent ;  but  I  maintain  that,  under 
an  absolute  government,  it  is  necessary  that  men  holding  im- 
portant offices  should,  in  the  case  of  public  danger,  or  on 
perceiving  that  affairs  are  being  badly  directed,  not  be  afraid 
to  encourage,  by  a  prudent  opposition,  the  moral  resistance 
which  alone  can  slacken  or  even  divert  the  mistaken  course 
of  authority.  Still  more,  if  they  foresee  the  possibility  of 
disaster,  against  which  no  preparations  have  been  made,  they 
should  take  thought  concerning  what  may  yet  be  done.  That 
the  pride  of  absolute  power  should  be  mortified,  that  en- 
deavors should  be  made  to  overcome  and  to  suppress  that 
resistance  when  it  is  too  isolated  to  avail,  I  understand.  But 
it  would  be  none  the  less  a  boon  to  the  state  and  for  the  ruler, 
if  this  opposition  were  sufficiently  powerful  to  oblige  him  to 
modify  his  plans  and  to  reform  his  life. 

"  With  regard  to  the  case  in  point,  let  us  suppose  that, 
instead  of  imputing  the  disapprobation  of  Talleyrand  or  of 
Fouche  to  intrigue  or  treason,  Napoleon  had  received  re- 
ports from  Dubois,  or  others  who  had  presented  it  as  a  proof 
of  the  universal  discontent ;  that  his  Prefect  of  Police,  him- 
self sharing  them,  had  pointed  out  to  him  that  these  senti- 
ments were  felt  and  expressed  by  Cambaceres,  by  Maret,  by 
Caulaincourt,  by  Murat,  lastly  by  the  Due  de  Gaeta,  whom 
Thiers  quotes  on  this  occasion — in  short,  by  every  important 
personage  in  the  Court  and  the  Government — would  the 
service  rendered  to  the  Emperor  have  been  an  evil  one? 
And  would  not  this  unanimous  opposition  have  been  the 
only  means  likely  to  enlighten  him,  to  arrest  his  steps,  to 
turn  him  from  the  way  of  perdition  at  a  period  when  it  was 
not  yet  too  late  ? 

"  As  to  the  reproach  addressed  to  Talleyrand  or  others, 
that  they  censured  the  Government  after  having  approved 
and  served  it,  that  is  a  natural  one  in  the  mouth  of  Napo- 


654  MEMOIRS  0*F  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

leon,  who,  moreover,  did  not  hesitate  to  exaggerate  it  by 
falsehood.  But  in  itself  it  is  foolish ;  otherwise  all  honest 
men  must  hold  themselves  forbidden,  because  they  have  once 
belonged  to  a  certain  government,  because  they  have  for- 
merly supported,  cloaked,  or  even  justified  its  faults,  either 
in  error  or  from  weakness,  to  grow  wiser  as  dangers  thicken 
and  circumstances  become  developed.  Unless  we  are  re- 
solved on  unceasing  opposition  or  on  unlimited  submission, 
a  time  must  come  when  we  no  longer  approve  what  we 
approved  yesterday,  when  we  feel  bound  to  speak  although 
hitherto  we  have  been  silent,  and  when,  drawbacks  striking 
us  more  forcibly  than  advantages,  we  recognize  defects  which 
we  had  hitherto  endeavored  or  pretended  to  ignore,  and  faults 
which  for  a  long  time  we  have  palliated !  After  all,  this  is 
what  happened  in  France  with  regard  to  Napoleon,  and  the 
change  took  place  in  the  mind  of  officials  and  citizens  alike, 
except  when  the  former  were  blinded  by  servility  or  cor- 
rupted by  a  base  ambition. 

"  In  our  own  modest  sphere  we  never  had  to  decide 
under  the  Empire,  except  upon  the  direction  of  our  wishes 
and  feelings,  for  we  never  took  any  part  in  politics  ;  yet  we 
had  to  solve  for  ourselves  that  question  which  continually 
recurs  to  me  when  I  reperuse  the  Memoirs  or  the  letters  in 
which  my  mother  has  preserved  her  impressions  and  her 
thoughts. 

"  My  mother  would  have  had  to  allude,  at  any  rate  indi- 
rectly, to  this  grave  subject  in  narrating  the  disgrace  of  M. 
de  Talleyrand.  She  saw  him,  at  that  time,  at  least  as  often 
as  formerly;  she  heard  his  own  statements.  Nothing  was 
better  known  just  then  to  the  public  than  the  cold  silence 
(equally  far  removed  from  weakness  and  from  insolence) 
with  which,  leaning  against  a  console  on  account  of  his  lame- 
ness, he  listened  to  the  Emperor's  philippic.  As  is  the  cus- 
tom under  absolute  monarchy,  he  swallowed  the  affront,  and 
continued  to  present  himself  at  Court  with  a  coolness  which 
was  not  to  be  mistaken  for  humility  ;  and  I  have  no  recollec- 


CONCLUSION.  655 

tion  that  his  attitude  under  the  Empire  was  ever  accused  of 
weakness  from  that  day  forth.  It  must,  of  course,  be  under- 
stood that  the  rules  of  the  point  of  honor  are  not  in  this 
case  as  they  are  understood  in  a  free  country,  nor  the  philo- 
sophic laws  of  moral  dignity  as  they  are  understood  outside 
the  world  of  courts  and  politics. 

"My  mother  would,  after  this,  have  had  to  relate  our 
own  little  episode  in  the  drama.  I  am  not  sure  whether  the 
Emperor,  on  his  arrival,  felt  or  showed  any  displeasure  toward 
my  father.  I  do  not  know  whether  it  was  not  subsequent 
reports  which  caused  our  disgrace.  In  any  case,  my  father 
did  not  become  immediately  aware  of  the  truth,  either  be- 
cause it  was  so  far  from  his  thoughts  that  he  suspected  no- 
thing, or  because  the  Emperor  did  not  think  of  him  at  first, 
He  was  a  friend  of  M.  de  Talleyrand's,  and  in  his  confidence 
up  to  a  certain  point :  this  in  itself  was  a  motive  for  suspicion 
and  a  cause  of  disfavor.  We  had  written  no  letter  and  taken 
no  step  that  could  tell  against  us,  and  I  remember  that  even 
our  speech  was  very  guarded,  and  that,  could  the  police  spies 
have  witnessed  the  interviews  with  M.  de  Talleyrand  in  my 
mother's  little  drawing-room,  where  my  parents  habitually 
received  him  alone,  they  could  have  discovered  nothing 
whereon  to  found  a  police  report.  Such  reports  were  made, 
however ;  my  father  felt  no  doubt  about  that,  although  the 
Emperor  never  displayed  his  resentment  by  any  outbreak, 
nor  did  he  even  enter  into  any  serious  explanation.  But  he 
acted  toward  him  with  a  cold  malevolence  and  harshness 
which  made  his  service  intolerable.  Thenceforth  my  parents 
felt  themselves  in  a  painful  position  with  the  sovereign, 
which  might,  perhaps,  lead  to  their  quitting  the  Court. 

"  There  was  no  amelioration  in  this  state  of  things  when 
Napoleon,  who  had  gone  to  Germany  in  April,  1809,  came 
back  to  Fontainebleau  on  the  6th  of  October,  the  conqueror 
of  "Wagram,  and  proud  of  the  peace  just  signed  at  Yienna. 
Victories,  however  dearly  bought,  did  not  make  him  more 
generous  or  kindly.  He  was  still  performing  work  impor- 
47 


656  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  E^MUSAT. 

tant  enough  to  be  vain  of  his  power,  and,  if  it  had  been 
put  to  severe  tests,  that  was  a  stronger  reason  why  he  desired 
it  to  be  respected.  However,  he  found,  in  reverting  to  the 
recent  souvenir  of  the  descent  of  the  English  upon  Walche- 
ren,  a  state  of  things  in  Spain  quite  unsatisfactory,  a  quarrel 
with  the  Holy  See  pushed  to  its  last  extremities,  and  public 
opinion  more  restless  about  his  inclination  for  war  than  re- 
assured by  his  victories — defiant,  sad,  even  critical,  and  be- 
setting with  its  suspicions  the  man  whom  it  had  so  long  en- 
vironed with  its  fallacies. 

"This  time  Fouche"  was  the  object  of  his  thoughts. 
Fouche  had  acted  in  his  own  way  at  the  moment  of  the 
descent  of  the  English.  He  had  assumed  authority,  he 
had  made  an  appeal  to  public  sentiment,  he  had  reorganized 
the  national  guard,  and  employed  Bernadotte  on  our  side. 
Everything  in  these  proceedings,  both  the  conception  and 
the  details,  had  greatly  displeased  the  Emperor.  All  his  ill- 
temper  was  concentrated  upon  Fouche ;  and,  besides,  as  he 
had  come  back  resolved  upon  the  divorce,  it  was  difficult  to 
hold  M.  de  Talleyrand  aloof  from  a  deliberation  in  which 
the  knowledge  of  the  condition  of  Europe  should  have  a 
decisive  weight.  In  this  must  be  still  seen  one  of  those 
proofs,  at  that  time  less  frequent  each  day,  of  the  almost 
impartial  justice  of  his  mind.  He  was  sometimes  heard  to 
say :  '  It  is  Talleyrand  alone  who  understands  me ;  it  is  only 
Talleyrand  with  whom  I  can  talk.'  He  consulted  him,  and 
at  other  moments  spoke  of  placing  him  at  Yincennes.  Thus 
he  did  not  fail  to  call  him  when  he  deliberated  upon  his 
marriage.  M.  de  Talleyrand  strongly  insisted  that  he  should 
unite  himself  to  an  Archduchess.  He  even  thought  that  the 
Emperor  had  sought  an  interview  with  him  because  his  in- 
tervention in  this  matter  would  contribute  to  decide  Austria. 
What  is  certain  is  the  fact  that  he  has  always  alluded  to  his 
conduct  in  this  instance  as  one  of  the  guarantees  he  had. 
given  of  his  fundamental  opinion  in  regard  to  the  alliances 
of  France  and  the  conditions  of  the  independence  of  Europe. 


CONCLUSION.  657 

"  It  is  seen  how,  in  all  these  matters — the  state  of  opinion 
during  the  campaign  of  the  Danube,  the  deliberations  rela- 
tive to  the  divorce,  those  which  preceded  the  marriage  with 
Marie  Louise — the  Memoirs  of  my  mother  would  have  been 
instructive  and  interesting.  It  is  unhappily  impossible  to 
supply  this  last  link.  I  am  only  able  to  recall  that  she  said 
that  the  Empress  was  wrong  in  doubting  her  fidelity  on  one 
occasion,  probably  relative  to  the  divorce.  She  has  an- 
nounced that  this  matter  was  explained.  I  can  not  explain 
it  in  its  place,  and  I  have  no  recollection  that  she  ever 
spoke  to  me  of  it.  At  the  moment  of  the  divorce  her  devo- 
tion was  appreciated,  and  Queen  Hortense  went  so  far  as  to 
consult  with  her  in  regard  to  it  twice  before  enlisting  her 
irrevocably  in  favor  of  her  mother.*  I  have  no  wish  to 
over-estimate  the  value  of  what  she  did  in  that  matter ;  the 
most  refined  delicacy  dictated  her  conduct;  and,  besides, 
with  her  deplorable  health,  her  forced  inactivity,  her  former 
relations  to  Josephine,  and  our  new  situation  near  the  Em- 
peror, she  would  have  had  in  a  renovated  Court,  near  a  new 
Empress,  a  most  awkward  and  painful  position.  It  may  be 
conceived,  indeed,  that  nothing  in  all  that  I  am  going  to  re- 
call restored  our  credit  at  the  Court,  and  my  family  remained 
there  irreparably  lessened  in  its  influence.  The  Emperor, 
however,  approved  of  my  mother's  remaining  with  the  Em- 
press Josephine.  He  even  praised  her  for  it ;  this  suited  her. 
He  regarded  her  as  a  person  on  the  retreat,  with  whom  he 
no  longer  need  to  concern  himself.  Having  less  to  expect 
from  him,  less  to  demand  from  him,  he  reproached  us  less  in 
his  thought  for  omitting  to  do  anything  on  our  part  to  please 
him.  He  left  my  father  in  the  circle  of  his  official  duties, 
to  which  his  character  and  a  certain  mingling  of  discontent 
and  fear  kept  him  closely  enough  confined.  It  was  almost 
established  in  the  mind  of  Napoleon  that  he  had  nothing 
more  to  do  for  us,  and  he  no  longer  thought  of  us. 

*  I  have  given,  in  a  note  to  Chapter  XXVII.,  the  letter  which  recounts  this 
conversation. — P.  R. 


658  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

"  This  new  situation  makes  it  evident  that  the  Memoirs 
of  my  mother  would  have  lost  their  interest.  She  no  longer 
visited  the  Court,  going  once  only  to  be  presented  to  the 
Empress  Marie  Louise ;  then  she  had  later  an  audience  of 
the  Emperor,  who  wrote  to  her  asking  it.*  She  would, 
therefore,  have  had  nothing  to  relate  of  which  she  had  been 
a  witness  in  the  imperial  palace.  She  was  no  longer  placed 
under  obligations  by  any  relations  with  the  great  personages 
of  the  state — at  least  she  considered  herself  relieved  of  them ; 
and  yielding,  perhaps  too  readily,  to  her  tastes,  to  her  suffer- 
ings, she  gradually  isolated  herself  from  everything  that 
would  remind  her  of  the  Court  and  of  the  Government. 

"  However,  as  my  father  did  not  cease  to  frequent  the 
palace  to  the  end,  as  the  confidence  in  M.  de  Talleyrand 
seemed  not  to  diminish,  and,  finally,  as  the  rapid  and  declin- 
ing steps  in  the  affairs  of  the  Emperor  more  and  more  affect- 
ed public  opinion,  and  soon  stirred  up  the  restless  attention 
of  the  nation,  my  mother  had  still  much  with  which  to  be- 
come acquainted,  and  much  to  observe,  and  she  would  have 
been  able  to  give  to  the  painting  of  the  last  five  years  of  the 
Empire  a  positive  historic  value. 

"  Some  reflections  on  many  events  of  those  five  years 
will  be  taken,  if  it  is  desired,  as  a  remembrance  of  what  I 
have  heard,  during  this  same  time,  from  the  lips  of  my 
parents. 

"  Among  the  events  of  that  year,  1809,  one  of  the  most 
important,  and  which  made  the  least  noise,  was  the  surprise 
upon  the  Pope.  The  facts  were  not  well  understood  while 
they  were  transpiring,  and,  it  is  necessary  to  say,  in  the  na- 
tion that  Louis  XIII.  put  under  the  protection  of  the  Holy 
Yirgin  no  one  thought  of  them.  However,  the  Emperor 
had  begun  by  causing  the  Roman  States  to  be  occupied,  then 
went  on  by  dismembering  them,  then  by  demanding  from 
the  Pope  that  he  should  make  war  upon  England,  then  by 

*  I  have  spoken  in  a  note  of  this  audience,  and  of  the  letter  which  fol- 
lowed.—P.  R. 


CONCLUSION.  659 

driving  him  from  the  city  of  Rome,  then  by  depriving  him 
of  all  temporal  power,  then,  finally,  by  causing  him  to  be 
arrested  and  guarded  as  a  prisoner.  How  strange  all  this, 
assuredly !  And  yet  it  seemed  that  no  government  of  Catho- 
lic Europe  seriously  offered  assistance  to  the  common  father 
of  the  faithful.  The  Pope  certainly,  deliberating  in  1804 
whether  he  should  crown  Napoleon,  had  not  objected  on  the 
ground  that  it  was  he  who,  in  that  year,  had  caused  the  Duke 
d'Enghien  to  be  shot.  The  Emperor  of  Austria,  deliberating 
in  1809  whether  he  should  give  his  daughter  to  Napoleon, 
did  not  object  on  the  ground  that  it  was  he  who,  in  that 
same  year,  had  placed  the  Pope  in  prison.  It  is  true  that  at 
that  time  all  the  sovereigns  of  Europe  had,  in  that  which 
relates  to  pontifical  authority,  entirely  different  ideas  from 
those  ascribed  to  them,  and  from  those  attributed  to  them 
to-day.  The  house  of  Austria,  in  particular,  had  for  a  tra- 
ditional rule  that  political  testament  in  which  the  Duke  of 
Lorraine,  Charles  V.,  recommends  that  the  Pope  should  be 
reduced  to  the  single  domain  of  the  court  of  Borne,  and 
makes  sport  'of  the  delusion  of  excommunications,  when 
the  real  point  is  that  Jesus  Christ  never  established  the  tem- 
poral power  of  the  Church,  and  that  the  latter  can  possess 
nothing  without  contradicting  his  example  and  without  com- 
promising his  Gospel.' 

"  In  a  letter  of  my  mother  she  advised  my  father,  in  the 
autumn  of  1809,  not  to  allow  'AthahV  to  be  represented 
at  Court,  at  a  moment  when  it  might  be  said  that  there  were 
some  allusions  to  papal  affairs  in  that  struggle  of  a  queen  and 
a  priest,  and  in  presence  of  a  prince  so  pious  as  the  King  of 
Saxony,  who  was  preparing  to  visit  the  Emperor.  In  this 
incident  was  the  maximum  of  evidence  of  the  direction  of 
her  thoughts  excited  by  a  tyrannic  act  of  which  so  much 
would  now  be  heard,  and  in  regard  to  which  public  opinion 
would  certainly  be  no  more  divided.  I  have  not  heard  it 
said  that  a  single  officer  in  this  immense  empire  would  have 
separated  himself  from  a  government  of  which  the  head  was 


660  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE 

excommunicated,  if  not  by  name,  at  least  impliedly,  by  the 
bull  launched  against  all  the  authors  or  abettors  of  the  at- 
tempts against  pontifical  authority.  I  can  not  refrain  from 
alluding  to  the  Due  de  Cadore.  He  was  a  man  not  without 
intelligence  nor  without  honesty  ;  but,  accepting  as  indispu- 
table laws  the  intentions  of  the  Emperor,  after  having  em- 
ployed his  ministry  in  the  spoliation  of  the  Spanish  dynasty, 
he  concurred  with  the  same  docility  in  that  of  the  sovereign 
Pontiff,  and,  himself  excommunicated  as  a  mandatory,  abet- 
tor',  and  counselor,  he  maintained  with  great  composure  that 
Napoleon  could  resume  that  which  Charlemagne  had  given, 
and  that  now  France  was  in  the  presence  of  Eome  by  the 
rights  of  the  Gallic  Church. 

"  The  situation  of  the  Empire  at  the  end  of  1809  is  sum- 
marized in  these  words  by  the  great  historian  of  the  Empire : 
6  The  Emperor  had  made  himself,  at  Yincennes,  the  rival  of 
the  regicides ;  at  Bayonne,  the  peer  of  those  who  would  de- 
clare war  on  Europe  to  establish  a  universal  republic ;  at  the 
Quirinal,  tfre  peer  certainly  of  those  who  had  dethroned  Pius 
VI.  to  create  the  Eoman  Eepublic.' 

"  I  am  not  one  of  those  who  assist  by  declamation  in  in- 
tensifying the  odium  of  these  acts.  I  do  not  regard  them  as 
unheard-of  monstrosities  reserved  to  our  century;  I  know 
that  history  is  full  of  examples  with  which  it  is  not  difficult 
to  compare  them,  and  that  analogous  outrages  can  be  found 
in  the  life  of  sovereigns  for  whom  posterity  has  preserved 
some  respect.  It  would  not  be  difficult  to  find  in  the  history 
of  the  severities  of  the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  executions  which 
are  not  incomparable  with  the  death  of  the  Due  d'Enghien. 
The  affair  of  the  Man  in  the  Iron  Mask,  especially  if,  as  it  is 
difficult  not  to  believe,  this  man  was  a  brother  of  the  King, 
is  nothing  that  the  murder  of  Vincennes  need  be  envious  of ; 
and  power  and  deception  are  not  less  worthily  arrayed  in  the 
act  by  which  Louis  XIV.  seized  Lorraine  in  1661  than  in 
the  fraudulent  dismemberment  of  Spain  in  1808.  I  see  in 
the  abduction  of  the  Pope  hardly  more  than  its  equivalent  if 


CONCLUSION.  661 

we  revert  to  the  middle  ages.  I  will  add  that,  even  after 
these  acts,  for  ever  to  be  condemned,  it  was  still  possible,  by 
the  use  of  a  little  wisdom,  to  have  assured  the  repose,  the 
prosperity,  and  the  grandeur  of  France  to  the  extent  that  no 
name  in  history  would  have  been  more-  honored  than  that 
of  Napoleon.  But  if  any  one  imagines  that  this  is  what  he 
has  not  done ;  that  all  the  wars  thereafter  undertaken  were 
no  more  than  the  mad  preparatory  steps  to  the  ruin  of  the 
country ;  and  that  thenceforward  the  character  of  the  man 
already  loaded  with  such  misdeeds  was  afflicted  with  a  super- 
ciliousness and  a  harshness  which  were  discouraging  to  his 
best  servants,  it  is  essential  to  clearly  understand  that,  even 
at  Court,  all  those  whom  the  servile  complaisance  of  false 
judgment  had  not  led  astray,  sadly  disabused,  could  rightly 
serve  without  confidence,  admire  without  affection,  fear  more 
than  hope,  desire  lessons  of  opposition  to  a  terrible  power, 
in  his  successes  to  dread  his  intoxication,  and  in  his  misfor- 
tunes to  weep  for  France  rather  than  him. 

"Such,  in  fact,  is  the  spirit  in  which  these  Memoirs 
would  have  been  continued,  and  it  will  even  be  found  that, 
by  a  kind  of  retroactive  effect,  this  spirit  is  shown  in  the 
recitals  anterior  to  1809.  At  the  epoch  in  which  history  was 
enacting,  this  spirit  was  slow  in  manifesting  itself,  as  I  have 
now  described  it.  Years  glided  away  in  sadness  timid  and 
defiant,  but  without  hate,  and  each  time  that  a  happy  circum- 
stance or  a  wise  measure  gave  their  light  to  them,  the  star 
of  hope  resumed  the  ascendant,  and  one  tried  to  believe  that 
the  progress  in  the  direction  of  evil  would  have  an  end. 

"  The  years  1810  and  1811  are  the  two  tranquil  years  of 
the  Empire.  The  marriage  in  the  one  and  the  birth  of  the 
King  of  Eome  in  the  other  seemed  pledges  of  peace  and  sta- 
bility. The  hope  would  have  been  without  shadows,  the  se- 
curity entire,  if  the  torn  veil  through  which  the  Emperor 
could  be  seen  had  not  revealed  passions  and  errors,  seeds 
always  productive  of  gratuitous  mistakes  and  senseless  at- 
tempts. It  was  seen  that  the  love  of  excess  had  taken  pos- 
session of  him,  and  was  carrying  all  before  it.  Besides  the 


662  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  RtiMUSAT. 

interminable  duration  of  a  war  with.  England,  with  no  possi- 
bility of  gloriously  conquering  her,  or  of  doing  her  any  in- 
jury that  was  not  damaging  to  us,  and  the  continuation  of  a 
struggle  in  Spain  difficult  and  unfortunate,  were  two  trials 
that  the  pride  of  the  Emperor  could  not  long  endure  in 
peace.  It  was  necessary  that  he  should  preserve  his  reputa- 
tion at  all  cost,  and  that  by  some  astounding  successes  he 
should  cause  to  be  forgotten  those  obstinate  checks  to  his 
fortune.  Sound-  judgment  pointed  out  that  the  Spanish 
question  was  the  one  to  end,  I  do  not  say  by  a  return  to 
justice  and  by  a  generous  concession — the  Bonapartes  are 
not  among  those  to  whom  such  measures  suggest  themselves 
— but  by  force.  It  can  readily  be  believed  that,  had  the 
Emperor  concentrated  all  the  resources  of  his  genius  and  of 
his  Empire  upon  the  resistance  of  the  Peninsula,  he  would 
have  conquered  it.  Unjust  causes  are  not  always  destined  to 
fail  in  this  world,  and  the  Emperor  ought  to  have  seen  that, 
in  humiliating  Spain,  he  was  preparing  the  occasion,  so  vain- 
ly sought,  for  striking  England,  since  that  nation  rendered 
itself  vulnerable  by  landing  her  armies  on  the  Continent. 
Such  an  occasion  made  it  worth  while  that  something  should 
be  risked.  Napoleon  should  have  gone  there  in  person,  and 
himself  entered  the  lists  with  Arthur  Wellesley.  What 
glory,  on  the  other  hand,  and  what  fortune  did  he  not  re- 
serve to  himself  and  to  his  nation,  in  persistently  adjourning 
the  struggle,  and  in  confronting  them  both  finally  on  the 
mournful  plains  of  Waterloo ! 

"  But  the  Emperor  had  no  relish  for  the  Spanish  ques- 
tion ;  he  was  tired  of  it.  It  had  never  yielded  a  pleasant  or 
glorious  moment.  He  half  understood  that  he  had  begun  it 
unjustly  and  conducted  it  feebly ;  that  he  had  singularly 
misconceived  its  difficulty  and  importance.  He  tried  to  have 
a  contempt  for  it,  in  order  not  to  be  humiliated  by  it ;  he 
neglected  it,  in  order  to  avoid  its  anxieties.  He  had  &  child- 
ish repugnance,  if  it  was  nothing  worse,  to  risking  himself 
in  a  war  which  did  not  appeal  to  his  imagination.  Shall  we 
-dare  say  that  he  was  not  absolutely  sure  of  doing  the  work 


CONCLUSION.  663 

well,  and  that  the  dangers  of  reverses  turned  him  from  an 
enterprise  which,  even  well  carried  to  its  conclusion,  would 
have  gone  too  slowly  and  with  too  many  difficulties  to  have 
increased  his  grandeur?  A  ready  extemporizer,  his  plan 
seemed  to  be  to  allow  everything  to  die  of  old  age  that  dis- 
pleased him,  and  to  build  up  his  fortune  and  fame  in  some 
new  enterprise.  These  causes,  joined  to  the  logical  develop- 
ments of  an  absurd  system,  and  to  the  developments  natural 
to  an  uncontrollable  temper,  annulled  all  the  guarantees  of 
prudence  and  safety  that  the  events  of  the  years  1810  and 
1811  seemed  to  have  given,  turned  him  from  Spain  to  Rus- 
sia, and  brought  about  that  campaign  of  1812  which  logically 
drew  him  on  to  his  destruction. 

"  Two  years  in  which  hope  had  the  ascendancy  of  fear, 
and  three  years  in  which  fear  left  very  little  place  for  hope 
— here  we  have  the  division  of  the  five  last  years  of  the  reign 
of  Napoleon. 

"In  speaking  of  1810  and  1811,  my  mother  would  have 
had  to  show  how  the  two  events,  which  ought  to  have  in- 
spired in  the  Emperor  the  spirit  of  conservation  and  of  wis- 
dom, his  marriage  and  the  birth  of  his  son,  served  in  the 
sequel  only  to  exalt  his  pride.  In  the  interval  all  the  ob- 
stacles between  him  and  the  execution  of  his  will  are  seen  to 
be  removed.  For  instance,  since,  long  ago,  he  does  not  par- 
don Fouche  for  having  a  will  of  his  own.  Fouche  showed 
that  he  desired  peace.  A  violent  scene  occurs  to  recall  that 
of  which  Talleyrand  had  been  the  object,  and  the  Due  de 
Rovigo  becomes  Minister  of  Police,  a  choice  which  beguiles, 
without  doubt,  the  hopes  of  the  Emperor  and  the  fears  of 
the  public,  but  which  seems,  however,  to  expand  still  more 
the  area  in  which  arbitrary  power  has  sway.  The  existence 
of  Holland  and  the  indocible  character  of  its  King  are  still 
an  obstacle,  at  least  a  limit.  The  King  is  compelled  to  abdi- 
cate, and  Holland  is  declared  French.  Rome  itself  becomes 
the  capital  of  a  department,  and  the  domain  of  St.  Peter  is 
united,  as  formerly  Dauphine  was,  to  furnish  a  title  for  the 
heir  to  the  Empire.  The  clerical  order,  driven  with  a  high 


664  MEMOIRS  OF  MADAME  DE  R&MUSAT. 

hand,  is  violated  in  its  customs  and  in  its  traditions.  An  ap- 
pearance of  a  council  is  attempted  and  broken  up,  and  prison 
and  exile  impose  silence  on  the  Church.  A  councilor,  sub- 
missive but  modest,  executes  the  wishes  of  his  master,  but 
does  not  glorify  him  ;  he  lacks  enthusiasm  in  his  servitude : 
Champagny  is  set  aside  for  Maret  and  the  lion  is  let  loose  in 
Europe,  and  no  voice  is  heard  which  rouses  it  to  madness. 
And  as,  during  this  time,  the  fortune  of  the  conqueror  and 
the  liberty  of  the  people  have  found  the  one  its  limit,  the 
other  its  bulwark  in  those  immortally  celebrated  lines  of 
Torres- Yedras,  it  becomes  essential  that  this  restless  and 
maddened  force  should  dash  itself  in  pieces  upon  Moscow. 

"  This  last  period,  so  rich  for  the  political  historian  in  its 
terrible  pictures,  has  but  little  value  to  the  simple  observer 
of  the  interior  scenes  of  the  government.  The  cloud  became 
dense  around  power,  and  France  knew  as  little  what  was 
done  as  if  she  had  been  lost  by  a  throw  of  dice.  Neverthe- 
less, there  was  still  the  work  of  drawing  the  instructive  pic- 
ture of  hearts  and  of  minds  ignorant  and  restless,  indignant 
and  submissive,  desolated,  reassured,  imposed  upon,  uncon- 
cerned, depressed — all  that  at  intervals,  and  sometimes  con- 
centrated into  an  hour ;  for  despotism,  which  always  feigns 
to  be  happy,  ill  prepares  the  masses  of  the  people  for  mis- 
fortune, and  believes  in  courage  only  when  it  has  deceived  it. 

"It  is,  I  think,  to  this  description  of  public  sentiments 
that  my  mother  would  have  been  able  to  consecrate  the  end 
of  her  Memoirs,  for  she  knew  something  of  what  everybody 
saw.  M.  Pasquier,  whom  she  saw  every  day,  observed,  by 
taste  as  well  as  by  a  sense  of  duty,  the  discretion  prescribed 
to  his  functions.  Accustomed  to  conversations  with  the 
class  of  persons  whom  he  ruled  without  restraint,  he  was 
during  a  great  length  of  time  careful  to  take  political  notes, 
when  all  the  world  was  free  to  talk  politics.  The  Due  de 
Rovigo,  less  discreet,  divulged  his  opinions  rather  than  the 
facts ;  and  the  conversations  of  M.  de  Talleyrand,  more  frank 
and  more  confident,  were  hardly  more  than  the  disclosure  of 
his  judgments  and  of  his  predictions." 


POSTSOEIPT. 


IN  the  first  volume  of  these  Memoirs  I  attempted  to  re- 
trace the  chief  events  of  my  grandmother's  life,  and  I  also 
narrated  the  circumstances  which  induced  her  to  rewrite  the 
manuscript  unhappily  destroyed  in  1815.  I  considered  it 
necessary  to  a  right  comprehension  and  appreciation  of  her 
views  that  the  reader  should  learn  how  she  had  been  brought 
up,  what  were  the  position  and  circumstances  of  her  parents, 
for  what  reasons  she  accepted  a  place  at  Bonaparte's  Court, 
through  what  phases  of  enthusiasm,  hope,  and  disenchant- 
ment she  passed,  how  by  degrees  liberal  opinions  gained  a 
hold  upon  her,  and  what  influence  her  son,  when  he  began 
to  make  a  figure  both  in  society  and  in  political  life,  exercised 
over  her. 

However  strong  may  be  his  confidence  in  the  success  of  a 
publication,  it  is  the  duty  of  an  editor  to  avail  himself  of 
every  aid,  and  to  make  sure,  or  nearly  so,  that  the  author 
shall  in  everything  be  understood.  This  was  all  the  more 
necessary  in  the  present  instance,  because  the  editor,  brought 
up  to  entertain  the  same  sentiments,  and  accustomed  to  hear 
the  same  opinions  and  the  same  anecdotes  repeated  around 
him,  might  well  be  afraid  of  deceiving  himself  respecting 
the  worth  or  the  success  of  these  reminiscences.  Relatives 
are  seldom  good  judges  either  of  the  intellectual  or  physi- 
cal attributes  of  their  kin.  Family  beauties  or  prodigies, 
admired  by  the  fireside  or  in  select  coteries,  are  frequently 


666  POSTSCRIPT. 

found  to  be  insignificant  personages  on  a  larger  stage,  and 
when  seen  in  broader  daylight.  I  therefore  thought  it  well 
to  relate  all  that  might  be  needed  for  the  instruction  of  the 
reader,  and,  by  introducing  him  into  the  private  life  of  the 
author,  to  account  for  a  mixture  of  admiration  and  severity 
in  these  Memoirs  which  sometimes  appears  contradictory.  I 
should  have  been  excused  for  adding  my  own  comments  upon 
the  ability  of  the  writer  and  the  character  of  her  hero ;  in- 
deed, such  comments  would  have  furnished  the  subject  of  a 
preface,  of  the  kind  that  we  are  told  ought  to  precede  every 
work  of  serious  importance.  But  I  carefully  avoided  writing 
any  such  preface,  because  I  had  one  to  offer  which  would 
enhance  the  value  of  the  book  to  the  public,  as  it  enhances  it 
to  myself — a  preface  written  by  my  father  more  than  twenty 
years  ago.  I  may  print  that  preface  now,  for  success  has 
justified  his  previsions  and  our  hopes. 

When  my  father  wrote  the  pages  that  I  am  about  to  lay 
before  the  reader,  the  Second  Empire  was  still  in  existence, 
and  to  all  appearance  secure.  Nothing  short  of  a  persistent 
trust  in  the  undeviating  principles  of  justice  and  liberty  could 
have  led  any  one  to  believe  that  its  fall  was  possible  or  prob- 
able. Since  then  the  fullness  of  time  has  come,  and  events 
have  marched  with  a  rapidity  which  could  not  have  been 
foreseen.  Similar  errors  have  brought  about  similar  re- 
verses ;  the  moody  and  wavering  mind  of  Napoleon  III.  has 
led  him  to  adopt  the  same  course  which  ruined  the  brilliant 
and  resolute  genius  of  the  great  Emperor.  My  father  for  the 
third  time  beheld  the  foreigner  in  France,  and  vanquished 
France  seeking  in  liberty  a  consolation  for  defeat.  He  suf- 
fered by  our  misfortunes,  as  he  had  suffered  by  them  fifty 
years  earlier,  and  he  had  the  melancholy  honor  of  repairing 
a  portion  of  those  misfortunes,  of  hastening  the  day  of  the 
final  deliverance  of  our  soil.  He  contributed  to  the  foun- 
dation of  a  liberal  and  popular  Government  on  a  heap  of 
ruins.  The  last  years  of  the  Empire,  the  War,  the  Com- 
mune, the  difficult  accession  of  the  Eepublic  through  so 


POSTSCRIPT.  667 

many  perils,  had  no  power  to  change  his  convictions;  and 
he  would  think  to-day  just  what  he  wrote  twenty-two  years 
ago  of  the  vices  of  absolute  power,  of  the  necessity  for 
teaching  nations  what  conquerors  cost  them,  of  the  right 
of  his  mother  to  set  down  her  impressions,  and  of  the  duty 
of  his  son  to  publish  them. 

PAUL  DE  KEMUSAT. 


II. 

"  LAFFITTE,  November,  1857. 

"  I  HAVE  once  more  taken  up,  after  a  long  lapse  of  time, 
the  manuscript  of  these  Memoirs,  which  my  mother  com- 
posed nearly  forty  years  ago ;  and,  having  attentively  re- 
perused  it,  I  now  leave  it  to  my  sons  and  to  their  children, 
with  an  injunction  to  publish  it.  I  believe  that  it  will  prove 
a  useful  historical  testimony,  and,  combined  with  her  corre- 
spondence, will  be  a  most  interesting  monument  to  the  intel- 
lect and  the  heart  of  a  gifted  and  good  woman.  This  work 
will  perpetuate  the  memory  of  my  mother. 

"  At  whatever  epoch  these  Memoirs  may  appear,  I  fore- 
see that  they  will  not  find  the  public  ready  to  receive  them 
entirely  without  protest,  and  with  satisfaction  complete  at  all 
points.  Even  should  the  Imperial  restoration  which  we  now 
witness  not  be  destined  to  a  prolonged  future — should  it  not 
be,  as  I  hope  it  may  not  be,  the  final  government  of  the 
France  of  the  Eevolution — I  suspect  that,  whether  through 
pride,  weakness,  or  imagination,  France,  as  a  whole,  will  con- 
tinue to  entertain  a  tolerably  exalted  opinion  of  Napoleon, 
which  it  will  be  reluctant  to  submit  to  the  free  examination 
of  politics  and  philosophy.  He  was  one  of  those  great  men 
who  are  placed  from  the  beginning  in  the  sphere  of  fancy 
rather  than  in  that  of  reason,  and  in  his  case  poetry  has  taken 
the  lead  of  history.  A  somewhat  puerile  sympathy,  a  some- 
what weak  generosity,  has  almost  always  made  the  nation 


668  POSTSCRIPT. 

refuse  to  impute  to  Bonaparte  those  awful  ills  which  he 
brought  down  upon  France.  The  nation  has  pitied  him  the 
most  for  its  own  misfortunes,  and  thought  of  him  as  the 
noblest  victim  of  the  calamities  of  which  he  was  the  author. 
I  know  that  the  sentiments  which  have  led  France  to  make 
this  strange  mistake  are  excusable  and  even  praiseworthy ; 
but  I  also  know  that  national  vanity,  the  lack  of  seriousness 
of  mind,  levity  which  takes  little  heed  of  reason  and  justice, 
are  the  sources  of  this  patriotic  error.  Let  us  lay  aside  the 
question  of  principle — since  the  nation  chooses  to  resolve 
that  question  differently  at  different  times,  and  glories  in 
despising  liberty  at  intervals — and  let  us  speak  only  the  lan- 
guage of  national  independence.  How  can  he  be  in  the 
eyes  of  the  people  the  hero  of  that  independence  who  twice 
brought  the  foreign  conqueror  into  the  capital  of  France, 
and  whose  government  is  the  only  one  which,  four  five  hun- 
dred years,  since  the  time  of  the  mad  King  Charles  VI.,  left 
French  territory  smaller  than  it  found  it  ?  Even  Louis  XV. 
and  Charles  X.  did  better  than  that.  Nevertheless,  I  am 
convinced  the  multitude  will  abide  in  its  error,  and  non  au- 
feretur  ab  ea. 

"  It  is,  then,  very  unlikely  that  the  spirit  in  which  my 
mother  has  written  will  ever  be  popular,  or  that  all  her  read- 
ers will  be  convinced.  I  am  prepared  for  this,  but  I  also 
think  that  among  thoughtful  people  the  truth  will  make  its 
way.  Infatuation  will  not  have  an  endless  duration,  and, 
notwithstanding  certain  obstinate  prejudices,  public  opinion 
— especially  if  liberty  be  at  length  restored  to  us  and  remain 
with  us — will  be  enlightened,  and  will  never  again  sacrifice 
the  rights  of  reason  and  those  of  the  public  conscience  to 
glory.  Will  my  mother  appear  sufficiently  impartial  to 
these  more  impartial  judges  ?  I  believe  she  will,  if  they  take 
account  of  the  time  at  which  she  wrote,  and  also  of  the  sen- 
timents and  ideas  which  inspired  her ;  and  so  I  have  no  hesi- 
tation in  delivering  up  her  Memoirs  to  the  judgment  of  the 
world. 


POSTSCRIPT.  669 

"  *  The  further  I  go,'  wrote  my  mother  to  me,  c  the  more 
I  am  resolved  that,  until  my  death,  you  shall  be  my  only 
reader,  and  that  is  enough  for  me.'  *  And  again :  '  Your 
father  says  he  knows  no  one  to  whom  I  could  show  what  I 
am  writing.  He  says  nobody  carries  so  far  as  I  do  "  the  tal- 
ent of  being  true."  That  is  his  expression.  Well,  then,  I 
do  write  for  no  one,  but  one  day  you  will  find  this  among 
my  effects,  and  you  may  do  with  it  what  you  will.'  She  was 
not  without  some  apprehensions.  '  There  is  a  thought  which 
sometimes  troubles  me.  I  say  to  myself,  "  If  one  day  my 
son  should  publish  all  this,  what  will  be  thought  of  me ! " 
The  idea  that  I  may  be  supposed  to  be  evil-minded,  or,  at 
least,  ill-natured,  makes  me  uneasy.  I  exhaust  myself  with 
the  effort  to  find  something  to  praise,  but  this  man  was  such 
an  exterminator  (assommateur)  of  worth,  and  we  were  brought 
so  low,  that  I  grow  utterly  disheartened,  and  the  cry  of  truth 
utters  itself  irresistibly.  I  know  no  one  but  you  to  whom  I 
would  intrust  such  confidences.'  f 

"  I  hold  myself  formally  authorized  by  these  passages  to 
bequeath  the  work  which  my  mother  confided  to  me  to  the 
public.  As  for  the  opinions  which  it  expresses,  taking  them 
upon  myself,  I  will  explain  myself  freely  respecting  the 
Emperor  and  the  Empire,  but  not  from  the  purely  political 
point  of  view.  All  that  I  might  say  on  the  subject  of  des- 
potism (which  I  hate)  would  be  without  importance  in  this 
case,  since  the  question  is,  What  would  be  a  just  judgment 
of  the  Emperor  and  the  Empire  formed  by  one  who  had 
witnessed  the  18th  Brumaire,  and  shared  the  confident  readi- 
ness of  the  nation  to  divest  itself  of  the  charge  of  its  own 
destinies,  by  placing  them  in  the  hands  of  one  man  ?  I  deal 
with  the  moral,  and  not  the  political,  aspect  of  the  matter. 

"  Let  us  first  consider  the  Emperor,  and  discuss  him  with 
those  only  who,  while  finding  much  to  admire  in  him,  are 

*  Letter  of  April  24,  1819.     I  have  already  quoted  this  letter  in  the  Intro- 
duction.—P.  R. 

f  Letters  of  September  10  and  October  8,  1818.— P.  R. 


670  POSTSCRIPT. 

willing  to  exercise  their  judgment  upon  what  they  admire. 
It  was  commonly  said,  under  his  reign,  that  he  despised 
men.  The  motives  by  which  he  defended  his  policy  in 
his  conversations  were  not  taken  from  among  the  noble 
qualities  of  the  human  heart,  but  from  that  which  he  thor- 
oughly understood,  the  imagination  of  the  people.  Now, 
imagination  is  naturally  captivated  by  grand  and  beautiful 
things,  and  the  imagination  of  the  Emperor,  which  was 
vivid  and  daring,  was  accessible  to  this  kind  of  charm.  His 
extraordinary  faculties  rendered  him  capable  of  great  things, 
and  he  employed  them,  with  others,  to  captivate  France,  the 
world,  and  posterity.  Thence  came  what  was  thoroughly 
admirable  in  his  power  and  his  life;  and,  if  we  were  to  con- 
sider that  only,  we  could  not  place  him  too  high.  Never- 
theless, a  close  observer  will  discern  that  it  was  by  that  in- 
telligence and  imagination,  rather  than  the  purely  moral  sen- 
timents of  justice  and  of  right,  that  all  was  done.  Take,  for 
example,  religion.  It  was  not  the  truth  of  religion,  it  was 
its  influence  and  its  prestige,  which  dictated  what  he  did  for 
its  cause ;  and  so  with  all  the  rest.  In  his  contemptuous  esti- 
mate of  humanity,  he  recognized  only  two  springs  of  action 
—vanity  and  self-interest ;  and  to  the  masterly  handling  of 
these  he  applied  himself  with  remarkable  ability.  While  by 
the  eclat  of  his  acts,  by  the  glory  of  his  arms,  by  a  perma- 
nent embellishment  of  conservative  social  principles,  he  gave 
to  his  government  what  was  essential  to  prevent  self-love 
from  blushing  at  the  fact  of  its  connection  with  it,  he  care- 
fully manipulated,  he  caressed,  he  even  exalted  other  senti- 
ments more  humble,  which  may  oftentimes  be  harmless,  but 
which  are  not  noble  and  virtuous  principles.  Love  of  re- 
pose, fear  of  responsibility,  preoccupation  with  the  pleasures 
of  private  life,  the  desire  of  personal  comfort,  the  taste  of 
riches,  as  well  in  the  individual  as  in  the  family  ;  finally,  all 
the  weaknesses  which  usually  accompany  these  sentiments 
when  they  are  exclusive,  found  in  him  a  protector.  It  is 
from  this  point  of  view  that  he  was  everywhere  recognized 


POSTSCRIPT.  671 

as  essential  to  the  preservation  of  order.  But,  when  men 
are  governed  by  the  springs  I  am  about  to  call  to  mind,  and 
when  the  governor  is  not  upheld  or  restrained  by  the  senti- 
ment of  pure  and  true  glory,  by  the  instinct  of  a  soul  natu- 
rally frank  and  generous,  it  is  an  easy  step  to  the  thought 
that  imagination,  vanity,  interest  are  paid  with  counterfeit 
as  well  as  good  money;  that  abuses  of  power,  appearances 
of  grandeur,  success  attained  at  all  cost,  tranquillity  main- 
tained by  oppression,  riches  distributed  by  favor,  prosperity 
realized  by  force  or  made  to  seem  to  exist  by  falsehood — 
that,  finally,  all  the  triumphs  of  artifice  or  of  violence,  all 
that  despotism  can  wrest  from  credulity  and  fear,  are  things 
which  also  prosper  among  men ;  and  that  the  world  is  often, 
without  serious  objection,  the  plaything  of  the  strongest  and 
most  shrewd.  But  nothing  in  the  nature  of  the  Emperor 
preserved  him  from  the  temptation  of  employing  such  means 
for  the  advancement  of  his  power.  Not  satisfied  with  merit- 
ing power,  he  consented,  when  he  could  not  merit  it,  to  take 
it  by  force  or  to  steal  it.  He  made  no  distinction  between 
prudence  and  cunning,  or  between  true  statesmanship  and 
Machiavelism.  Finally,  policy  is  always  in  the  path  of  de- 
ception, and  Napoleon  was  always  a  deceiver. 

"  It  is  deception  which,  in  my  judgment,  most  degraded 
the  Emperor,  and,  unhappily,  with  him  his  empire.  For 
this  reason,  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  France  yielded  obedi- 
ence to  him,  that  men  rendered  him  service,  whatever  glory 
the  nation  has  gained,  whatever  probity  and  whatever  talent 
the  men  have  shown.  One  can  not  wholly  ignore  the  mis- 
fortune of  having  been  the  dupe  or  the  accomplice,  in  all 
cases  the  instrument,  of  a  system  in  which  a  cunning  decep- 
tion plays  as  great  a  part  as  wisdom,  and  violence  as  genius ; 
of  a  system  in  which  cunning  deception  and  violence  must 
lead  on  to  the  desperate  extremes  of  an  unwise  policy.  To 
such  a  policy  France  will  not  consent,  and  it  is  only  in  the 
interest  of  self-love  that  France  exalts  the  glory  of  Napo- 
leon. 

48 


672  POSTSCRIPT. 

"  As  to  his  associates,  they  likewise  ought  certainly  not 
to  have  been  humiliated  by  what  they  did  or  what  they  si- 
lently sustained.  They  were  right  in  not  publicly  denoun- 
cing what  the  nation  did  not  denounce,  and  in  presenting 
services  loyally  rendered,  honesty,  zeal,  devotion,  capacity, 
the  patriotism  which  they  had  displayed  in  the  performance 
of  public  duties,  as  an  offset  to  the  bitter  denunciations  of 
their  adversaries,  to  the  trifling  or  corrupt  parties,  who  had 
done  less  or  who  had  done  worse.  The  recollections  of  the 
Convention  or  those  of  the  emigration  could  not  be  brought 
against  them  to  any  advantage,  and,  after  all,  they  did  well 
not  to  blush  at  their  cause.  Their  justification  is  found  in 
the  language  of  Tacitus,  who,  even  under  a  despotism,  thinks 
that  praise  is  due  a  capable  and  efficient  officer,  though  he 
may  practice  what  he  calls  dbsequium  et  modestia.* 

"  These  last  words  are  applicable  to  persons  of  high  char- 
acter who,  ]ike  the  members  of  my  family,  served  the  Em- 
peror without  mean  selfishness  and  without  special  distinc- 
tion. But  still,  when,  under  his  reign  itself,  eyes  were 
opened  to  the  character  of  his  despotism — when  the  wail  of 
the  dying  nation  had  been  heard,  when  later,  in  reflecting 
upon  the  fall  of  a  dictatorial  power  and  on  the  succession  of 
a  constitutional  power,  that  policy  was  brought  up  for  con- 
sideration which  does  not  place  government  and  liberty  in 
the  hands  of  enemies,  it  was  impossible  not  to  revert  with 
some  embarrassment,  with  some  bitterness  of  heart,  to  those 
days  in  which  example,  confidence,  admiration,  thoughtless- 
ness, a  justifiable  ambition,  had  united  to  urge  good  citizens 
to  place  themselves  among  the  supporters  of  absolute  power. 
For  he  who  does  not  seek  to  make  himself  blind,  he  who  is 
ready  to  be  honest  with  himself,  will  find  it  impossible  to 
conceal  the  fact  that  dignity  of  mind  and  character  is  lost 
under  the  pressure  of  a  despotism  even  glorious  and  neces- 

*  " '  Agricola,'  xlii.  I  remember  that  when  I  read  these  two  words  of  Taci- 
tus, I  made  them  precisely  applicable  to  the  case  of  my  father.  They  describe 
him  perfectly." 


POSTSCRIPT.  673 

sary,  and  more  completely  under  one  that  is  harsh  and  main- 
tained without  reason.  There  is  no  cause  of  self-reproach 
without  doubt ;  but  neither  can  one  praise  his  own  acts,  or 
be  satisfied  with  what  he  has  done  or  what  he  has  seen ;  and 
the  more  the  soul  is  opened  to  the  convictions  of  liberty, 
the  more  one  turns  his  eyes  with  grief  to  the  days  in  which 
liberty  was  shut  out  from  it — days  of  voluntary  servitude,  as 
Boetius  characterizes  it. 

"  What  it  has  not  been  either  necessary  or  proper  to  say 
of  one's  self  to  his  contemporaries  and  of  the  latter  to  them- 
selves, it  is  a  duty  to  frankly  avow  when  one  writes  for 
himself  and  for  the  future.  What  conscience  has  felt  and 
revealed,  what  experience  and  reflection  have  taught,  it  is 
necessary  to  delineate,  or  not  write  at  all.  Unbiased  truth, 
disinterested  truth,  is  the  controlling  thought  of  the  Memoirs. 
This  is  the  basis  of  those  of  my  mother. 

"  She  had  suffered  intensely  during  the  years  in  which 
her  opinions  were  in  opposition  to  her  interests,  and  during 
which  the  former  could  have  triumphed  over  the  latter  only 
per  dbrupta,  as  Tacitus  says,  speaking  of  this  same  thing, 
sed  in  nullum  reipublicoB  usum.*  'Attempts  of  this  kind, 
besides,  never  fall  to  the  lot  of  a  woman ;  and,  in  a  remark- 
able letter  that  my  mother  wrote  to  one  of  her  friends,  f  she 
said  to  her  that  women  at  least  had  always  the  expedient  of 
saying  in  the  palace  of  Caesar : 

*  Mais  le  coeur  d'Emilie  est  hors  de  ton  pouvoir.'  | 

And  she  declared  to  her  that  this  line  had  been  her  secret 
consolation. 

"  Her  correspondence  will  reveal  in  its  lightest  shades,  in 
its  deepest  recesses,  the  sentiments  of  a  pure  and  active  soul. 
It  will  there  be  seen  how  she  united  a  generous  kindness  to 
a  penetrating  observation  of  all  those  weaknesses,  of  all  those 

*"Agricola,"xlii. 

f  Madame  de  Barante. 

j  "  But  the  heart  of  Emilia  is  out  of  your  power." 


674  POSTSCRIPT. 

unhappy  circumstances  of  our  nature,  which  give  opportunity 
to  the  painters  of  morals  to  display  their  talents.  It  will 
there  also  be  seen  how,  after  having  caused  her  much  suffer- 
ing, Napoleon  had  kept  a  place  in  her  thoughts ;  how  this 
memory  still  moved  her;  and  how,  when  the  unhappiness 
of  his  exile  at  St.  Helena  was  described,  she  was  deeply 
affected.  When,  in  the  summer  of  1821,  the  news  of  the 
death  of  Napoleon  was  brought  to  Paris,  I  saw  her  melt 
with  tears,  and  she  always  became  sad  when  uttering  his 
name.  As  to  the  men  of  her  time,  I  will  say  only  one  thing : 
she  had  learned  to  know  them  at  Court.  The  recollection 
she  had  preserved  of  it  left  her  no  pleasure.  I  have  some- 
where seen  related  a  little  circumstance  that  greatly  inter- 
ested those  who  witnessed  it.  It  was  the  time  when  the 
French  imitation  of  Schiller's  '  Marie  Stuart '  was  in  fashion. 
There  was  a  scene  in  which  Leicester  repels,  by  pretending 
not  to  know  him,  a  devoted  young  man  who,  relying  on 
his  secret  thoughts,  comes  to  him  with  a  proposal  to  save 
the  Queen  of  Scotland.  Talma  represented  admirably  the 
haughty  cowardice  of  the  courtier,  who  disavows  his  own 
affection  for  fear  of  being  compromised,  and  insolently  repels 
the  man  who  makes  him  afraid :  '  What  do  you  want  of 
me  ?  I  do  not  know  you.'  The  act  terminated,  and  in  the 
box  in  which  we  were  seated  the  entire  company  was  struck 
with  this  scene,  and  my  mother  in  her  agitation  suffered 
some  words  to  escape  whose  import  was :  '  That  was  it  pre- 
cisely !  I  have  seen  the  same  thing ! '  When  suddenly  ap- 
peared at  the  entrance  of  the  box  M.  de  B ,  to  whom  no 

special  application  could  assuredly  have  been  made,  but  who 
had  been  chamberlain  of  the  Emperor,  my  mother  could 
no  longer  restrain  herself.  She  said  to  Mme.  de  Catellan, 
(If  you  knew,  madame! '  .  .  .  and  she  wept! 

"  It  may  be  said  that  this  condition  of  her  mind  has  in- 
fluenced her  in  coloring  her  pictures.  I  do  not  think  it  so. 
Saint-Simon  has  also  painted  a  Court,  and  the  despotism  in 
it  was  more  becoming,  more  natural,  and  the  characters,  per- 


POSTSCRIPT.  675 

haps,  a  little  more  strong  in  our  days.  "What  does  he  do, 
however,  if  not  justify,  in  his  truthful  painting,  what  the 
teachers  of  his  time  and  the  moralists  of  all  times  have  said 
of  Courts  in  general  ?  The  exaggeration  of  Saint-Simon  is 
in  the  language.  Of  a  fault  he  makes  a  vice ;  of  a  weakness, 
a  cowardice ;  of  a  negligence,  a  treason ;  and  of  a  hesitation, 
a  crime.  The  expression  is  never  strong  enough  for  his 
thought,  and  it  is  his  style  which  is  unjust  rather  than  his 
judgment. 

"  Let  us  mention  a  person  of  a  less  impulsive  mind,  more 
reserved  in  her  language,  and  who  certainly  had  her  reasons 
for  seeing  with  more  indulgence  than  Saint-Simon  the  people 
over  whom  Louis  XIY.  reigned.  How  did  Mme.  de  Mainte- 
non  speak  of  the  Court?  'As  to  your  friends  of  the  Court,' 
she  wrote  to  Mile,  de  Glapion, '  they  are  always  with  you, 
and,  if  you  could  see  what  we  see,  you  would  find  yourself 
seeing  (at  Saint-Cyr)  only  irregularities,  wayward  conduct, 
want  of  light;  while  we  see  murders,  jealousies,  hatreds, 
treacheries,  insatiable  desires,  degradations,  which  are  covered 
up  by  the  name  of  grandeur,  of  courage,  etc.,  for  I  fly  into 
a  passion  in  merely  permitting  myself  to  think  of  them.'  * 
The  judgments  of  my  mother  are  not  characterized  by  such 
vivid  expressions.  But,  like  Saint-Simon,  like  Mme.  de 
Maintenon,  she  had  good  reason  to  think  that  a  constant 
personality,  which  betrays  itself  by  fear,  jealousy,  complai- 
sance, flattery,  forgetfulness  of  others,  contempt  of  justice, 
and  desire  to  injure  others,  reigns  at  the  Court  of  absolute 
kings,  and  that  self-love  and  interest  are  the  two  keys  of 
every  Court  secret.  My  mother  has  said  no  more ;  and  her 
diction,  without  being  cold  and  tame,  never  exaggerates  the 
facts  with  which  she  deals,  and  allows,  in  almost  everything 
she  has  been  compelled  to  relate,  that  excuse  demanded  by 
human  weakness  in  its  struggle  with  bad  example,  with  the 
temptation  of  fortune,  and  with  the  seductions  of  a  power 
that  does  not  find  itself  compelled  to  respect  its  promises. 
*  Letter  678,  p.  426,  tome  ii,  edition  of  1857. 


676  POSTSCRIPT. 

It  is  not  without  reason  that,  when  we  speak  of  the  Empire, 
our  eulogies  are  almost  exclusively  addressed  to  its  armies, 
because,  at  least,  in  the  business  of  war,  intrepid  contempt  of 
death  and  of  suffering  is  such  a  triumphant  victory  over  the 
selfishness  of  ordinary  life,  that  it  covers  up  whatever  this 
selfishness  can  suggest,  even  to  the  soldiers  themselves,  of 
bitter  sacrifices  to  pride,  to  envy,  to  cupidity,  to  ambition. 

"Look  through  the  centuries  in  which  historians  and 
moralists  endeavor  to  paint  in  its  true  colors  every  evil  that 
incessantly  increases  within  the  sphere  of  government,  espe- 
cially in  the  shadow,  or,  if  Louis  XIV.  demands  it,  in  the  sun 
of  absolute  power.  It  is  strange,  in  fact,  how  that  which 
ought  to  bring  into  play  only  devotion,  and  to  place  the  bene- 
fit of  all  above  personal  interest — I  mean  the  service  of  the 
state — furnishes  to  human  selfishness  occasions  to  make  mis- 
takes and  means  of  being  satisfied  by  the  art  of  concealing 
itself.  But  it  is  apparent  that  this  has  not  been  said  often 
enough,  for  I  have  not  discovered  that  the  evil  is  soon  to 
end,  or  even  become  less  conspicuous.  Truth  alone,  inces- 
santly presented  to  public  opinion,  can  arm  it  against  false- 
hoods, of  which  party  spirit  and  state  government  raise  a 
cloud  concealing  the  misfortunes  of  the  body  politic.  The 
masses  of  the  people  can  never  know  too  well  at  what  price 
human  insolence  sells  them  the  necessary  service  of  a  gov- 
ernment. In  times  of  revolution  especially,  misfortune  some- 
times renders  it  indulgent  to  the  forms  of  government  which 
have  fallen,  and  the  system  which  triumphs  covers  with  a 
deceptive  veil  everything  which  makes  its  victory  odious. 
Truthful  books  must,  some  time  or  other,  cause  all  masks  to 
fall,  and  leave  to  all  our  weaknesses  the  salutary  fear  of  be- 
ing some  day  revealed." 


NOTES. 


Note  1,  Preface,  page  xi. 

"  ON  the  sixth  day  of  Thermidor,  in  the  second  year  of  the 
French  Republic,  one  and  indivisible. 

"  By  a  sentence  passed  on  the  day  aforesaid,  in  open  court, 
Sellier  being  Vice-President,  and  Foucault,  Gamier,  Launay, 
and  Barbier  on  the  Bench,  the  minute  of  the  verdict  was  signed 
by  them  and  by  Tavernier,  recording  clerk. 

"  On  the  declaration  of  the  jury,  which  sets  forth  that  Jean 
Gamier,  surnamed  Yergennes,  the  father,  ex-count,  aged  seven- 
ty-five years,  born  at  Dijon,  in  the  department  of  Cote-d'Or, 
residing  in  Paris  at  No.  4  Rue  Neuve-Eustache,  and  Charles 
Gamier,  otherwise  Vergennes,  aged  forty-two  years,  ex-noble, 
born  at  Dijon,  in  the  department  of  Cote-d'Or,  and  others,  are 
convicted  of  having  been  the  enemies  of  the  people,  and  of 
having  conspired  against  the  sovereignty  of  the  people,  by 
holding  communication  and  correspondence  with  the  internal 
and  external  enemies  of  the  Republic,  by  supplying  them  with 
men  and  money  in  order  to  contribute  to  the  success  of  their 
arms  on  French  territory,  by  participating  in  the  plots,  con- 
spiracies, and  assassinations  of  the  tyrant  and  his  wife  against 
the  French  people,  particularly  on  the  days  of  the  28th  of 
February,  1791,  and  of  the  10th  of  August,  1792,  by  conspir- 
ing in  the  House  of  Detention,  otherwise  the  St.  Lazare,  in 
order  to  escape  therefrom,  and  afterward,  by  means  of  the 
murder  and  assassination  of  the  people's  representatives,  and 
especially  of  the  members  of  the  Committee  of  Public  Safety 


678  NOTES. 

and  of  General  Security,  to  dissolve  the  Republican  Govern- 
ment and  restore  the  royal  family,  and  finally  by  endeavoring 
to  destroy  the  unity  and  indivisibility  of  the  Republic. 

"  The  Public  Prosecutor  having  been  heard  on  the  applica- 
tion of  the  law,  it  appears  that  the  tribunal  has  condemned  to 
the  penalty  of  death  Jean  Gamier,  otherwise  Vergennes,  fa- 
ther, and  Charles  Garnier,  otherwise  Vergennes,  son,  conform- 
ably with  articles  4,  5,  and  7  of  the  law  of  22d  Prairial,  and 
has  declared  their  possessions  confiscated  to  the  Republic. 

"From  the  Act  of  Accusation,  drawn  up  by  the  Public 
Prosecutor  on  the  5th  Thermidor,  present  month,  against  the 
said  Vergennes,  father  and  son,  and  others,  a  literal  extract  has 
been  made  as  follows  : 

"  That,  on  examination  of  papers  in  possession  of  the  Pub- 
lic Prosecutor,  it  is  proved  that  Dillon,  Roussin,  Chaumette, 
and  Hebart  had  agents  and  accomplices  in  their  conspiracies 
and  their  perfidy  in  every  House  of  Detention,  in  order  to  assist 
them  in  their  plots  and  to  prepare  the  carrying  out  thereof. 
Since  the  sword  of  Justice  has  fallen  on  the  most  guilty,  their 
agents,  having  in  their  turn  become  chiefs,  have  omitted  no- 
thing in  order  to  attain  their  end  and  carry  out  their  plots,  de- 
structive to  liberty. 

"  The  Vergennes,  father  and  son,  have  always  been  servile 
instruments  of  the  tyrant  and  his  Austrian  Committee,  and  only 
assumed  a  mask  of  patriotism  in  order,  from  the  posts  they  thus 
attained,  to  use  the  Revolution  for  the  advantage  of  despotism 
and  tyranny.  They  had  dealings,  moreover,  with  Audriffet,  an 
accomplice  in  Lusignan's  plot ;  papers  found  in  the  dwelling  of 
the  latter  are  a  proof  of  their  criminal  and  liberty-destroying 
complicity. 

"  By  conformable  extracts  handed  in  by  the  keeper  of  the 

Records,  undersigned 

"DERBY  (orARRY?)." 

Note  2,  Preface,  page  xv. 

As  I  have  already  said  in  the  preface,  my  grandmother  was 
very  intimate  with  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  notwithstanding  the  dif- 
ference of  their  ages,  their  feelings,  and  their  position.  The 


N01ES.  679 

following,  written  to  her  husband,  during  her  sojourn  with  a 
lady  rendered  famous  by  the  "  Confessions  "  of  Rousseau  and 
the  Memoirs  of  Mme.  d'Epinay,  will  not  be  without  interest  : 

"  SANNOIS,  25d  Floreal,  year  13  (May  12,  1805). 

"  This  morning,  when  Charles's  lessons  were  over,  I  went 
to  see  Mme.  d'Houdetot  in  her  private  room.  She  seemed  to 
think  me  worthy  of  little  confidences  of  a  sentimental  nature, 
which  I  received  with  the  more  sympathy  because,  my  thoughts 
being  always  with  you  and  saddened  by  your  absence,  I  am 
ready  to  share  in  any  heart-felt  emotion.  She  showed  me  some 
verses  she  had  written  on  her  former  friend,  M.  de  Saint-Lam- 
bert, and  three  portraits  of  him,  and  she  spoke  of  past  joys,  of 
memories  and  regrets,  with  a  sort  of  childishness  and  ignorance 
of  evil,  if  I  may  so  express  it,  which  seemed  to  make  her  ex- 
cusable. I  am  convinced  that  her  society  would  be  dangerous 
to  a  woman  of  weak  character,  or  to  one  whose  life  was  not 
happy.  Any  woman  who  was  hesitating  between  love  and 
virtue  would  do  well  to  shun  her ;  she  is  a  hundred  times  more 
dangerous  than  an  utterly  corrupt  person.  She  is  so  peaceful, 
so  happy,  so  free  from  anxiety  as  to  the  next  life.  It  would 
seem  that  she  trusts  to  the  words  of  the  Gospel :  '  Her  sins, 
which  are  many,  are  forgiven  :  for  she  loved  much;' 

"  Do  not  fear,  however,  that  the  sight  of  this  tranquil  old 
age,  following  on  an  erring  youth,  will  upset  my  principles. 
I  do  not  pretend  to  be  stronger  than  others,  and  I  feel  that 
my  virtue  is  secure  because  it  is  founded  on  happiness  and 
on  love.  I  can  be  sure  of  myself,  because  I  love  you  and 
am  beloved  by  you.  The  experience  of  twelve  years  has 
sufficiently  convinced  me  that  my  heart  was  destined  for 
you  alone,  but,  at  the  risk  of  shocking  you,  let  me  say  that 
I  should  not  have  been  so  certain  of  myself  had  you  not 
been  my  husband." 

Some  years  later,  toward  the  end  of  January,  1813,  Mme. 
d'Houdetot  expired,  at  the  age  of  eighty-three,  and  my  grand- 
mother wrote  the  following  description  of  her,  which  I  have 
found  among  her  papers  : 

"  Mme.  d'Houdetot  has  just  died,  after  a  long  and  pros- 


680  NOTES. 

perous  career.  In  the  midst  of  political  storms,  her  old  age 
has  been  peaceful  and  her  death  quiet  and  calm.  Is  it  from 
the  exercise  of  superior  powers  of  reason,  or  from  the  courage 
of  a  strong  soul,  or  from  fortuitous  circumstances,  that  her  life 
has  been  so  undisturbed  and  her  death  so  touching  and  so 
quiet  ?  Certainly  not.  Her  disposition  could  not  arm  her 
against  the  storms  of  life,  but  it  shielded  her  from  them.  Like 
certain  happy  children  who  instinctively  avoid  a  stumbling- 
block,  without  either  having  perceived  it  or  being  hurt  by  it, 
she  passed  through  the  world  with  a  confidence  which  is  usu- 
ally the  attribute  of  youth  only,  and  which  we  are  accustomed 
to  respect,  because  we  know  that  our  warnings  would  be  far 
more  likely  to  sadden  than  to  enlighten  such  pathetic  ignorance. 

"Mme.  d'Houdetot  was  born  in  the  brilliant  and  palmy 
days  of  our  monarchy.  The  men  of  genius  who  had  illumi- 
nated the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.  left  behind  them  a  long  track 
of  light,  which  sufficed  to  brighten  the  paths  of  their  succes- 
sors. Cardinal  Fleury's  long  and  pacific  government  afforded 
opportunity  for  the  development  of  art  and  talent.  Mme.  d'Hou- 
detot, from  her  youth  upward,  was  in  a  position  to  gratify  her 
tastes  and  inclinations.  She  had  been  given  in  marriage  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  the  day,  and  she  began  by  holding  a  place 
in  society  such  as  is  generally  held  by  young  ladies.  From 
fifteen  to  twenty  all  women  are  very  much  alike.  Brought  up 
with  the  same  habits,  fashioned  by  the  same  education,  they  all 
present,  more  or  less  attractively,  the  same  appearance  of  pos- 
sessing those  qualities  which  it  is  absolutely  necessary  a  young 
lady  should  possess.  And,  generally  speaking,  not  only  their 
parents  but  they  themselves  are  ignorant  at  the  time  of  their 
marriage  of  the  qualities  and  defects  which  will  regulate  their 
future  conduct. 

"  Hence  their  first  steps  in  the  world  are  less  the  result  of 
their  own  tastes  than  that  of  the  second  education  they  receive 
from  society  and  from  the  husbands  who  have  chosen  them. 
How  many  women  have  attained  to  knowledge  of  themselves 
only  after  either  conquering  their  feelings  or  weakly  yielding 
to  them  ?  How  many  have  remained  in  utter  self -ignorance 
from  want  of  opportunities  for  the  development  of  their  incli- 


NOTES.  681 

nations?  A  young  wife  who  begins  with  good  and  strong 
principles,  who  retains  them  even  in  her  faults,  who  knows 
how  to  return  to  them  afterward — such  a  one  is,  doubtless,  of 
a  strong  and  unusual  stamp.  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  from  whom 
this  digression  is  not  so  far  removed  as  might  at  first  be  sup- 
posed, can  not  certainly  be  comprised  among  such  as  these. 
Nevertheless,  the  real  sentiment  which  pervaded  all  her  actions 
seems  to  place  her  apart  from  the  ordinary  class  of  erring  wo- 
men. 

"Mme.  d'Houdetot  was  brought  up  like  her  contempora- 
ries. Through  particular  circumstances  she  was  placed  in  the 
midst  of  a  society  professing  opinions  which  fascinated,  though 
they  did  not  mislead  her.  She  was  surrounded  by  literary  men, 
but,  though  admiring  their  wit  and  appreciating  their  talents, 
she  did  not  share  in  their  passions.  She  was  especially  intimate 
with  men  who  were  called  at  that  time  philosophers  or  acade- 
micians, and  her  youthful  and  lively  imagination  was  amused 
at  the  sharp  turn  they  gave  to  censure.  Their  world-wide 
philanthropy,  which  we  have  often  seen  exercised  at  the  ex- 
pense of  individual  feelings,  charmed  her.  She  became  attached 
to  the  dogmas  of  a  sect  which  preached  the  love  of  humanity, 
and  which  either  did  not  or  would  not  foresee  that  the  new 
institutions  they  wished  to  found  could  only  be  built  on  the 
ruins  of  the  old,  and  that  a  time  of  social  anarchy  must  neces- 
sarily ensue — which,  indeed,  is  the  only  part  of  their  plan  that 
has  as  yet  come  to  pass.  Friendly  voices  preached  this  new 
doctrine  to  Mme.  d'Houdetot,  and  embellished  it  with  their 
wit  and  talent.  Eager  to  enjoy,  she  gave  herself  little  time 
for  reflection.  If  one  would  hear  the  warnings  of  reason  one 
must  sometimes  consent  to  an  interregnum  of  pleasure,  and 
Mme.  d'Houdetot  could  not  consent  to  that.  Her  various  inti- 
macies sometimes  led  her  too  far,  but,  if  sincere  friends  have 
deplored  them,  I  doubt  whether  any  ever  attempted  to  advise 
or  warn  her.  The  error  was  in  her  heart,  and  how  is  it  pos- 
sible to  destroy  such  illusions  ? 

"  No  one  could  possess  more — I  will  not  say  goodness,  but 
more  kindness  than  Mme.  d'Houdetot.  Goodness  implies 
the  choice  of  good  as  against  evil ;  it  perceives  the  evil  and 


682  NOTES. 

forgives  it.  Mme.  d'Houdetot  never  perceived  evil  in  any 
one.  We  have  seen  her  suffer  real  pain  when  the  least  blame 
of  any  one  was  expressed  in  her  presence.  On  such  occasions 
she  would  impose  silence  in  a  manner  which  never  offended, 
for  she  merely  showed  that  we  were  inflicting  suffering  on  her. 
This  tenderness  of  heart  prolonged  the  feelings  and  tastes  of 
her  youth. 

"  A  habit  of  blaming  others  may,  perhaps,  sharpen  the 
mind  more  than  it  can  expand  it ;  but  it  is  certain  that  it  con- 
tracts the  heart,  and  produces  an  anticipated  dissatisfaction 
which  takes  the  charm  away  from  life.  Happy  are  those  who 
die  in  their  illusions  !  The  light  and  transparent  veil  which 
has  never  been  taken  from  before  their  eyes  gives  to  all  sur- 
rounding objects  a  freshness  and  a  charm  that  old  age  does 
not  tarnish.  Thus  Mme.  d'Houdetot  would  often  say,  'The 
pleasures  of  life  have  left  me,  but  I  can  not  accuse  myself  of 
having  become  weary  of  any  one  of  them.'  This  temper  of 
mind  made  her  easy  in  the  ordinary  intercourse  of  life,  and  in- 
dulgent toward  young  people.  She  liked  them  to  enjoy  plea- 
sures she  had  herself  appreciated,  and  the  memory  of  which 
was  dear  to  her,  for  she  felt  a  sort  of  gratitude  toward  every 
period  of  her  life. 

"  The  same  temperament  gave  her,  at  an  early  age,  a  great 
love  for  the  country.  Eager  to  enjoy  every  pleasant  thing,  she 
took  care  not  to  miss  those  pleasures  which  are  produced  by  a 
beautiful  landscape  or  a  smiling  country.  She  would  stand  in 
ecstasy  before  a  beautiful  view,  and  listen  delightedly  to  the 
songs  of  birds  ;  she  loved  to  gaze  at  an  exquisite  flower  ;  and 
all  these  tastes  she  retained  to  the  last  day  of  her  life.  When 
young,  she  wished  to  love  everything  ;  and  the  tastes  she  had 
retained  in  the  evening  of  life  made  her  old  age  beautiful  and 
happy,  just  as  they  had  contributed  to  embellish  those  halcyon 
days  when  each  sensation  is  a  separate  pleasure. 

"Mme.  d'Houdetot  was  passionately  fond  of  poetry,  and 
herself  wrote  very  pretty  verses.  Had  she  published  them  she 
would  easily  have  acquired  a  celebrity  she  was  far  from  desir- 
ing, for  vanity  of  every  kind  was  alien  to  her  character.  Her 
talent  for  verse-making  was  an  agreeable  pastime.  It  was 


NOTES.  683 

guided  by  her  kind  heart,  and  was  another  source  of  enjoy- 
ment. 

"  In  the  autumn  of  life  she  was  exposed,  like  every  one  else, 
to  the  gloomy  impressions  produced  by  the  political  atmos- 
phere. But  her  sweetness  of  disposition  once  more  came  to 
her  help  in  those  fatal  days.  During  the  Reign  of  Terror  she 
lived  in  the  country  ;  her  place  of  retreat  was  respected,  her 
kinsfolk  surrounded  her  with  attentions.  It  is  quite  possible 
that  her  only  recollections  of  this  time  were  those  of  the  family 
affection  and  intimacy,  to  which  danger  and  anxiety  gave  a 
value  unsuspected  in  days  of  security  and  pleasure. 

"  On  our  troubles  coming  to  an  end,  she  returned  to  the 
world  with  all  her  wonted  sweetness,  and  began  again  to  seek 
for  a  happiness  which  should  not  be  evanescent.  The  neces- 
sity of  loving,  which  was  always  her  most  imperious  need, 
made  her  supply  the  loss  of  former  friends  by  new  ones,  young- 
er than  herself  and  selected  with  judgment,  whose  affection 
helped  her  to  forget  what  she  had  lost.  She  imagined  that  she 
honored  the  memory  of  those  she  had  formerly  loved,  and  who 
were  now  gone  from  her,  by  cherishing  her  susceptibilities  in 
her  old  age.  She  had  not  sufficient  strength  to  live  only  on 
memories,  and  did  not  think  herself  bound  to  cease  loving  be- 
fore she  ceased  to  live.  A  kind  Providence  still  watched  over 
her,  and  preserved  her  old  age  from  the  isolation  to  which  it  is 
usually  condemned.  Assiduous  and  delicate  attentions  adorned 
her  last  days  with  some  of  the  coloring  that  had  brightened 
her  spring  ;  complacent  friends  consented  to  let  their  friend- 
ship assume  the  guise  which  she  had  been  accustomed  to  give 
to  her  feelings.  Austere  Reason  might  sometimes  smile  at  the 
eternal  youth  of  her  heart,  but  the  smile  was  not  unkind;  and, 
at  the  close  of  her  life,  Mme.  d'Houdetot  still  met  with  the 
affectionate  indulgence  to  which  childhood  only  seems  to  have 
a  recognized  right. 

"  Moreover,  she  proved  by  the  courage  and  constancy  of 
her  last  moments  that  the  prolonged  indulgence  of  the  feel- 
ing of  the  heart  does  not  diminish  its  strength.  She  felt  she 
was  dying,  and  yet,  when  on  the  point  of  leaving  so  happy  a 
life,  she  uttered  but  one  request,  both  tender  and  pathetic. 


684:  NOTES. 

t  Do  not  forget  me,'  she  said  to  her  family  and  friends  weeping 
round  her  bed.  *  I  should  be  braver  if  I  had  not  to  leave  you  ; 
but  at  least  let  me  live  in  your  memory  ! '  Thus,  she  stirred 
the  embers  of  a  life  on  the  point  of  extinction  ;  and  those  two 
words,  *  I  love  ! '  were  the  last  utterance  which  her  soul  in  de- 
parting breathed  toward  the  Divinity." — P.  K. 


Note  3,  Preface,  page  xxxv. 

My  father's  impressions  will  be  described  by  himself  in 
another  publication,  so  that  it  would  be  useless  to  dwell  upon 
them  here.  Nevertheless,  I  think  it  appropriate  to  let  the 
reader  see  in  this  place,  as  an  illustration  of  what  he  then 
thought  and  always  continued  to  think,  a  song  written  by  him, 
and  which,  like  several  others  of  his  composition,  had  a  great 
success  in  society.  It  was  written  when  he  was  only  eighteen 
years  old,  and,  though  it  is  not  his  best,  I  have  selected  it  be- 
cause, as  a  political  song  of  the  early  days  of  the  Restoration, 
it  has  all  the  interest  of  a  source  of  information,  an  indication, 
and  a  picture  : 

LA  MAEQUISE  OU  L'ANCIEST  KfiGIME. 

Air :  "  Croyez-moi,  buvons  &  longs  traits." 

"  Vous  n'avez  pas  vu  le  bon  temps ; 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans !  " 

Ainsi  parlait  une  marquise, 
Tine  marquise  d'autref  ois, 
Qui  fit  sa  premiere  sottise 
En  mille  sept  cent  cinquante-trois. 
"  Ah !  disait-elle,  quand  j'y  pense, 
Je  voudrais  m'y  revoir  en  cor : 
C'Stait  vraiment  le  siecle  d'or, 
Moms  le  costume  et  1'innocence. 

"  Croyez-moi,  e'6tait  le  bon  temps : 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans  I 

"  Mise  au  couvent  selon  1'usage, 
Grace  aux  lecons  du  tentateur, 


NOTES.  685 


De  mes  questions  avant  1'age 
J'effrayais  notre  directeur. 
Un  f  rere  de  eoeur  Cunegonde, 
Le  marquis,  venait  au  parloir. 
II  m'apprit  ce  qu'il  faut  savoir 
Pour  se  presenter  dans  le  inonde. 

" Croyez-moi,  c'etait  le  bon  temps: 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans  1 

"  II  fit  tant  que,  par  convenance, 
A  m'Spouser  il  fut  reduit. 
Je  n'ai  pas  garde"  souvenance 
D'avoir  vu  son  bonnet  de  nuit. 
C'etait  un  seigneur  a  la  mode. 
Pour  lui  je  n'avais  aucun  gout, 
Et  lui  ne  m'aimait  pas  du  tout  .... 
Je  n'ai  rien  vu  de  si  commode. 

"Mes  enfants,  c'etait  le  bon  temps : 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans! 

"  Ce  que  j'ai  vu  ne  peut  se  rendre. 
Ah  1  les  hommes  sont  bien  tombe"s. 
Tenez,  je  ne  puis  pas  comprendre 
Comment  on  se  passe  d'abbe"s. 
Que  j'ai  vu  d'ames  bien  conduites 
Par  leur  galante  piete" ! 
Sans  eux  j'aurais  bien  regrette 
Qu'on  ait  supprim6  les  jesuites. 

"  Mes  enfants,  c'etait  le  bon  temps : 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans  I 

"  C'est  un  sot  metier,  sur  mon  ame, 
Que  d'etre  jolie  aujourd'hui. 
Je  vois  plus  d'une  jeune  femme 
Secher  de  sagesse  et  d'ennui. 
Plus  d'un  grande  mois  aprds  la  noce, 
J'ai  vu,  certes  j'en  ai  bien  ri, 
J'ai  vu  ma  niece  et  son  mari 
Tous  deux  dans  le  meme  carrosse ! 

"  Vous  n'avez  pas  vu  le  bon  temps : 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans ! 


686  NOTES. 

"  Helas !  des  plaisirs  domestiques 
Ignorant  la  solidite, 
Petits  esprits  democratiques, 
Yous  radotez  de  liberte. 
Cette  Iibert6  qu'on  encense 
N'est  rien  qu'un  reve  dangereux. 
Ah!  de  mon  temps,  pour  etre  heureux 
C'etait  assez  de  la  licence. 

"  Croyez-moi,  c'etait  le  ton  temps : 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans ! 

"  Mais,  sous  un  regne  legitime, 
Dedaignant  de  vaines  clameurs, 
Eeprenez  &  1'ancien  regime 
Ses  lois,  afin  d'avoir  ses  moeurs. 
Alors,  comme  dans  ma  jeunesse, 
Un  chacun  sera  bon  chretien. 
Vous  voyez,  je  m'amusais  bien, 
Et  n'ai  jamais  manque  la  messe. 

"  Croyez-moi,  c'etait  le  bon  temps ! 
Que  je  vous  plains  d'avoir  vingt  ans !  " 

Note  4,  pages  29  and  Jfi. 

The  "  erasures  "  alluded  to  by  Mme.  de  Remusat  were  the 
formal  removal  from  the  lists  of  the  proscription  of  the  names 
of  those  persons  who  were  relieved  from  their  disabilities  by 
an  act  of  grace.  The  French  word  is  radiations,  and  M. 
Littre  does  not  consider  it  well  employed. — TEANSLATOES. 

Note  5,  page  272. 

The  indiscretions  or  the  imprudence  of  M.  Salembemi  were 
not  the  only  causes  of  anxiety  to  my  grandparents  during  this 
sojourn  in  Italy.  The  following  letter  from  my  grandfather 
throws  a  light  on  this  matter  : 

"  MILAN,  18th  Prairial,  year  13  (7th  June,  1805). 
"  I  can  not  allow  Corvisart  to  leave  Milan  without  intrust- 
ing him  with  a  letter  for  you.     He,  happier  than  myself,  will 


NOTES.  687 

see  you  in  a  week  or  ten  days,  while  I  can  not  reckon  on  that 
pleasure  for  at  least  five  weeks  to  come.  Keep  this  news  to 
yourself,  for  the  Emperor  wishes  it  to  be  believed  that  he  will 
not  be  in  Paris  for  two  months  ;  but  in  reality  he  intends  to 
reach  Fontainebleau  on  the  22d  or  23d  of  next  month,  at  latest. 
I  have  another  reason  for  writing  by  Corvisart,  which  is  that 
all  our  letters  are  read  or  liable  to  be  read  ;  this  hampers  me 
when  I  want  to  write  confidentially.  Salembemi  owes  his  dis- 
missal to  a  letter  of  his,  inclosed  with  mine,  that  was  read  at 
the  post.  Their  knowledge  of  that  letter  has  many  times  pre- 
vented me  from  writing  freely  to  you,  and  has  often  greatly 
distressed  me.  For  instance,  I  should  have  warned  you  that 
you  have  again  been  maligned  to  the  Emperor  in  reports  re- 
ceived from  Paris,  which  accuse  you  of  having  joined  in 
Mme.  de  Damas's  malicious  stories  about  the  journey  in  Italy 
and  the  Emperor's  brothers.  His  Majesty  has  not  mentioned 
the  subject  to  me,  but  it  has  annoyed  him,  and  he  has  spoken 
of  it  several  times  to  others.  He  seems  to  intend  that  you 
should  break  off  all  acquaintance  with  that  family.  You  may 
imagine  what  answers  I  made  to  those  persons  who  spoke  as 
from  the  Emperor,  while  I  was  not  allowed  to  give  my  ex- 
planation to  himself.  You  understand,  of  course,  that  I  do  not 
believe  a  word  of  this  absurd  calumny,  and  I  offered  to  show 
all  your  letters  without  exception.  But  I  wanted  to  know  who 
had  denounced  you.  I  even  gave  my  word  that,  if  it  were 
Fouche,  I  would  abstain  altogether  from  reproaching  him.  To 

this  I  received  no  reply,  because  I  am  sure  M is  the  author  ; 

he  is  always  intriguing,  and  always  with  the  same  purpose  that 
we  knew  of  in  the  winter.  Although  you  must  not  write  on 
the  subject  either  to  the  Emperor  or  the  Empress,  you  might 
nevertheless  call  on  Fouche,  as  a  friend,  and  ask  him  to  render 
you  the  service  of  telling  you  candidly  whether  it  is  in  his  re- 
ports that  you  have  been  accused.  You  might,  perhaps,  also 
explain  the  circumstances  openly  to  him,  and  he  would  find,  I 
have  no  doubt,  means  to  serve  us.  If  you  write  to  the  Em- 
press— and  it  would  be  well  for  you  to  do  so,  for  you  do  not 
write  to  her  sufficiently  often — you  might,  without  actually 
approaching  the  subject,  tell  her  something  of  your  way  of  life. 
49 


688  NOTES. 

It  occurs  to  me  that,  as  your  sister  is  more  intimate  than  you 
with  the  Damas  family,  a  mistake  of  identity  may  have  arisen. 
Turn  all  this  over  in  your  mind  with  your  usual  wisdom,  and 
take  advantage  of  what  at  last  I  am  able  safely  to  write  to  you; 
for  this  has  been  going  on  a  long  time  already.  Do  not  think, 
however,  that  the  master  is  not  treating  me  well ;  he  might  be 
kinder,  but  I  have  no  reason  to  complain.  As  for  the  Empress, 
she  never  talks  of  anything  except  of  herself  and  her  own  con- 
cerns. It  is  impossible  to  be  more  selfish  than  she  has  become. 
Nevertheless  she  boasts  of  your  letters,  and  always  makes  the 
Emperor  read  them." — P.  R. 

mm 

DEPAtfi 

DS1VL; 


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